Serendipity
by Marauders4EVR
Summary: Lily Evans has always strived for perfection, if only to please her family and friends. She has a flawless boyfriend, top marks, and a shrewd mind. Certainly, she is too clever to be swooned by James Potter's deviousness. Yet, the fate seems to have different plans. As the two enter their seventh year, a series of events cause them to be closer than they ever were.*I don't own HP*
1. Chapter 1

Serendipity

Summary: Lily Evans has always strived for perfection, if only to please her family and friends. She has a flawless boyfriend, top marks, and a shrewd mind. Certainly, she is too clever to be swooned by James Potter's deviousness. Yet, the fate seems to have different plans. As the two enter their seventh year, a series of events cause them to be closer than they ever were, and slowly they begin to come to terms with who they really are and how far they will go for love.

Author's Note: Yes, I'm practically mad to think that I can write a popular fanfiction, let alone a popular Jily fanfiction. All I ask is that you can give me a chance.

Chapter One

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_'When I look into your eyes, it's like watching the night sky.'_

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_"Vital lives are about action. You can't feel warmth unless you create it, can't feel delight until you play, can't know serendipity unless you risk."__ — Anonymous_

On the evening of September 1st, 1977, Lily Evans determined that she had crossed the line into madness. And the person to drive her there was none other than James Potter. For no one had ever made the seventeen year old girl feel more sure and yet more insecure.

It all began with the opening of the envelope. Lily held the envelope in her shaking hands, feeling her stomach knot.

It was one of those peculiar, unseasonable, days. The harsh wind rattled the windows of the Hogwarts Express. Streaks of lightning flashed through the air, lighting up the small compartment.

Lily squinted through the sheets of rain, trying to make out the countryside as it rushed past. A breeze swept through the crack in the window, tousling her dark red hair. Lily swore silently, as to not awake the other members of the compartment. She had spent nearly a quarter of an hour on her hair, fifteen minutes more than she would've liked.

Alas, her attention was drawn back to that blasted envelope.

Lily's subconscious urged her to put the envelope back into her trunk. Yes, that's exactly what she would do. She would forget that it ever existed, and slowly the envelope would creep to the bottom of the trunk, until it was buried by the mismatched socks and that revolting sweater that Petunia had given her for her birthday.

"You can't get rid of it that easily."

Lily nearly jumped out of her skin. She glared across the compartment at Alice Prewett. Alice was the closest thing Lily had to a best mate, and as such, could see right through her. Alice didn't say anything else however and instead merely twirled a strand of blonde hair around her finger. Lily felt a small, unwanted, pang of jealously. There was no denying that Alice was beautiful. Her hair was short, blonde, and wispy. Her icy blue eyes seemed to hold the world. The worst thing about it, though, was that everything seemed to come easy to Alice. She never tried to achieve perfection. It was just a part of who she was.

Lily, on the other hand, felt uncomfortable in her own skin. Her parents and friends always complimented her beauty, but they were obviously seeing something that Lily couldn't. She wasn't too tall, nor was she that small. She was rather skinny, and wasn't as formed as Alice. The only thing that Lily liked about her appearance was her eyes. They were almond shaped and strikingly green.

But Lily couldn't worry about such things, now. For now, she had been caught in the act.

"How did you know what I was thinking?" Lily accused.

"It's written all over your face, dear," Alice sighed, "Do pass the chocolate frogs, Mary."

A freckly face popped out from behind a book. Mary MacDonald's auburn hair was pulled into pigtails, giving her the appearance of someone much younger. She gave them all a shy smile, passing along the sweets, before hiding behind her book once more. This wasn't at all unusual. Mary had nearly read out the entire Hogwarts library, and was often boring the others with random facts. Still, she was pure at heart, and always loyal.

"Excuse me," Lily spoke up, "What exactly is written all over my face?"

"Honestly, Lily," Alice chirped, "You're clearly thinking of scrapping the envelope. I don't know why you're making such a fuss over it."

"I'm not making a fuss, Alice Prewett," Lily snapped, "I hardly care at all."

Mary glanced up, "You're not even a bit curious?"

"No, I am not," Lily said, firmly, "It doesn't matter to me."

"I see," Alice said, her mouth twitching, "Is this why you failed to open the envelope three weeks ago, when it was delivered?"

"Oh, sod off," Lily sighed, her bravado waning.

Mary pulled one of her pigtails, "You'll find out, eventually, won't you? I mean, Professor Dumbledore will announce it at the feast."

"That's true," Alice said, "There's no avoiding it. Go on then, Lily."

In the end, Lily succumbed to peer pressure. She ripped open the letter with much anticipation. A thick piece of parchment fell out, crinkling beneath her hands.

"You read it, Alice, if you're so eager," Lily said, handing her the piece of parchment.

"You're the Head Girl," Alice said, smiling, "Congratulations."

The knot in Lily's stomach loosened, and she suddenly realized how silly she had been acting. She had been chosen as the new Head Girl. Well, of course she had. The teachers simply loved her. Everyone loved Lily.

Alice proudly pinned the badge onto Lily's robes. She then passed Lily the instructions. Lily was about to read them, when the door to the compartment suddenly opened, and another girl entered. She had a wave of brown, curly, hair and crimson eyes. Marlene McKinnon's tie was crooked, her makeup was smudged, and she had missed a button on her shirt.

Lily sighed, "Where have you been, Marly?"

Marlene's cheeks reddened, "I was just off to see Sirius."

"Dear, you're almost as easy to read as Lily," Alice said, patiently.

"Personally, I don't see why everyone fancies Black," Lily said, shortly, "He's only second to Potter at being an arrogant pig."

The others had knowing looks about them, which made Lily scowl. She was possibly the only one in Hogwarts, who didn't reside in the Dungeons, who loathed James Potter.

"You might want to change your views on Potter," Marlene said, slyly. She took a seat next to Lily, readjusting her button.

"Why on earth would I do that?" Lily scoffed.

Marlene merely giggled, and Lily's temper flared, "For Merlin's sake, Marlene! If you don't tell me what you're hiding, I will write your mother and tell her that you have been off snogging Black!"

Marlene frowned at this, but couldn't restrain herself, "Potter's been made Head Boy!"

And just like that, Lily's world fell apart.

She was silent for the rest of the train ride, her anger slowly brewing. By the time the train made its slow crawl into Hogsmeade Station, the storm had passed, giving way to a beautiful crescent moon.

"Lily?"

Lily looked up with a start. Alice was staring at her, rather impatiently, "You're the Head Girl. You're supposed to be out on the station, helping the students. It was in the letter."

"Oh!" Lily gasped, scrambling up. She grabbed her trunk and her barn owl, Athena.

She gave her Athena a quick pat, before hurrying onto the station, becoming lost in the sea of students, "First years, please follow Hagrid. He will take you to the castle. All others will report to the carriages. Come on, now. No shoving!"

Lily fell back against the train, exhausted. It was going to be a horrid year, indeed.

"Not giving up on them, already?"

Lily's heart quickened, and she quickly pressed her hair down. She immediately regretted eating the chocolate frog on the train. She wiped her mouth, flashing a smile at the seventh year Ravenclaw that was striding towards her.

Sheridan McLerry was, without a doubt, the perfect boyfriend. Lily remembered the exact moment that he had fallen into her life; literally. She had been browsing a bookcase in the library, when he had stumbled off of a ladder, barely missing her. After he recomposed himself, he had asked her out on the spot. Sheridan was intelligent, loyal, and handsome. He had locks of golden hair, silver eyes, and when he smiled, and Lily practically melted.

"I've missed you," Sheridan whispered. Before Lily could stop him, he had pulled her into a kiss. Lily hesitated. She often frowned upon public displays of affection. Then again, it had been months since she had last felt his lips press onto hers. When she finally pulled back, her face was flaming.

"I missed you too," Lily said, gently, "I finally opened the envelope. I was made Head Girl."

"So I heard," Sheridan said, proudly, "I just wish that I could be your Head Boy."

"I'd take you over Potter any day," Lily murmured.

Sheridan's smile waned, "Potter? Potter's been made the Head Boy? You're joking?"

"I'm not," Lily sighed, miserably.

Sheridan was clearly displeased, "How could Professor Dumbledore possibly choose him? I mean, he's an egotistical bully."

Suddenly, Lily's vocal cords seemed to betray her. She found herself saying, "He's been trying to change. I haven't lost complete faith in him."

Sheridan raised an eyebrow, "Why don't you tell him that?"

Lily spun around, her jaw dropping. James Potter was sitting on the top of the train, grinning from ear to ear. Lily swore under her breath. James was literally basking in the moonlight, looking like nothing less than the hero. Lily supposed that she could see why people were attracted to him. James's hair was in disarray, but he seemed to make it work. He had a pair of perfectly round glasses on a long nose. Behind them was a pair of hazel eyes that were crinkled from laughter. His hair was as black as the inky sky.

Lily shook her head, clearing her thoughts. She then stomped over, staring up at him, "Potter! Get down from there, this instant!"

James merely grinned, "How am I supposed to watch over the students, if I can't see them? Didn't you hear, Evans? I've been made Head Boy!"

"Then lead by example," Lily screeched, "Get down from there! Now!"

By now, other students were looking up and pointing.

"Run along," Lily snapped, "You'll miss your carriage."

"I'll get him down," Sheridan said, pulling out his wand.

"No," Lily said, hastily. As much as she enjoyed the idea of her boyfriend hexing James, she didn't want to cause a scene in front of the younger students.

"Will you please take them to their carriage?" Lily asked, sweetly.

Sheridan scoffed, but gave her a quick peck on the cheek and complied.

Meanwhile, the driver had come out. He was a beefy man, and was staring up at James with a cross between anger and amusement, "Potter, get down from there! You're going to get hurt, and I'm going to have a lawsuit on my hands!"

"Alright, Frank," James sighed. Without further ado, he promptly leapt down. Lily gasped, reflexively. Fortunately, James bounced, and did a small somersault, stopping right in front of Lily.

"Crazy bloke," Frank The Driver chuckled, returning to the train.

"Did I scare you, Evans?" James grinned, running a hand through his hair.

"You are an arse, James Potter," Lily shrieked, shoving him away, "A sheer, horrid, arse. And now, thanks to you, we've missed the carriages."

"I've got a broomstick that we could share," James said, gesturing to his Cleansweep 5000, while also wagging his eyebrows.

Quaking under Lily's fiery glare, James shrugged, "Or, we could walk."

He bent down, going to grab her trunk. Lily heaved it up instead, snapping, "I can manage."

James shrugged, "If it suits you. Let Athena out of her cage, though. She can fly ahead with Nicodemus."

Lily glowered, but opened her owl's cage. James did the same, and the two owls flew off, happily hooting.

"It looks like they're getting along," James said, shoving his hands into his pockets.

"Traitors," Lily snapped, "Come on then."

The two headed up the slope. Trying to break the tense silence, James said, "It's a beautiful moon."

Lily merely grunted.

James ran another hand through his hair, and stated, "You know, these are the nights that bring out the romantic side in people. Care for a moonlight kiss?"

Lily swirled around, jabbing her finger into his chest, "First of all, this night was perfectly horrid a few moments ago. This is merely the eye of the storm. Second of all, I would rather kiss the Giant Squid than even think about kissing you. Thirdly, I happen to have a boyfriend!"

James stroked his chin, "The eye of the storm. Interesting."

Lily's retort was drowned out by a scream.

"PRONGS!"

Something suddenly collided with James, nearly tipping him over. A tall teenager with long, raven-black, hair was practically bouncing with excitement. Sirius Black's silver eyes shone with adventure, though those looking close enough could see that they had also shown their share of pain. Sirius didn't show any sign of depression now, however. Instead, he pulled James into a hug, promptly giving him a noogie.

"Prongs, my mate, it's absolutely spiffing to see you!" Sirius cried.

"Sirius, we just saw each other on the train," James choked, "For Merlin's sake, you spent the entire summer at my house."

Lily looked up, curious, "Why was he at your house?"

She immediately wished that she hadn't spoken, for it only drew attention to herself.

"Evans!" Sirius squealed, "How absolutely marvelous it is to see you!"

He pulled her into a tight hug, much to her protest.

"Black, get off of me," Lily choked.

Sirius complied, but not before giving her a bold wink.

"You know, Evans," Sirius mused, "I was just saying the other day how much I missed you."

"Charmed," Lily snapped, brushing herself off.

"It's true, he really did say it."

Two other boys were making their way down the slope. One was plump, with rather large front teeth, watery eyes, dirty hair, and a jumpy demeanor. The other was very thin and pale, with sandy hair, amber eyes, and a face filled with scars. Peter Pettigrew and Remus Lupin smiled at Lily.

"Congratulations on becoming Head Girl," Lupin complimented, "It's a shame that you have to work with this bloke."

Lily laughed, thanking him, before saying, "Are you feeling ill, Remus? You're looking rather clammy."

"I must be hungry," Lupin said, shakily, "I suppose that we should head up to the Great Hall."

The others agreed and continued to walk up the winding path. The fireflies shone their way, and it was quite beautiful.

"There it is," James suddenly whispered.

They now had a clear view of Hogwarts, with all of its dazzling towers and turrets shining in the light of the crescent moon and stars.

James stopped and the others waited. Lily thought about going on without them, but something held her back as well.

"This is it," James continued to whisper, "This is the last time that we get to see the castle for the first time."

"That doesn't make any sense," Lily said, impatiently.

"Think about it, Lily," Lupin said, patiently, "You felt it, too. That moment every September when you first see Hogwarts castle."

"Obviously we've seen it before," Sirius added, "There's just something about seeing it, for the first time, after summer's end."

James nodded, "It's like Hogwarts is welcoming us home."

"That's actually really sentimental," Lily said, blinking.

James shrugged, "We've been known to show human feelings, occasionally."

The five started forward, once more. Lily suddenly remembered something, "By the way, Black, I'd appreciate it if you and Marlene at least waited until you got to Hogwarts, before…meeting."

Sirius laughed, "Honestly Lily, you are so frigid. Eh, I suppose you're right, though. Marlene's turning into a right bird."

"Excuse me?" Lily put her hands to her hips, "What exactly is she turning into?"

Sirius raised an eyebrow, "You know, someone who easily puts out. You can usually spot them from a mile away. They wear way too much makeup, always drink a bit too much butterbeer, and their Hogwarts robes are tight in just the right places."

"Basically, a bird is the opposite of you, Lily," Lupin smiled, "No offence, mind you."

"Not at all," Lily said, "So, I don't get the honor of being called a bird?"

James, who had remained quiet for several minutes, looked up and snorted, "You? You, Lily Marie Evans, are definitely not a bird."

"Oh," Lily said, shortly, "What am I, then?"

James was clearly thrown off by the question, "Come again?"

"I want to know," Lily said, earnestly, "If you lot could describe me in five words, what would you say?"

Lupin thought for a moment, before saying, "Brightest witch of her age. I know it's not grammatically correct, but it's true."

Lupin was not one for flirting. As such, Lily knew that he was being sincere.

"Thank you," Lily said, truly touched, "What about you, Pettigrew?"

Peter tilted his head, "Complicated."

The others stared at him for a moment, before Lily gently said, "Peter, that's only one word."

"I stand by it," Peter shrugged.

Lily shook her head, before turning to Sirius, who said, "Lily. Nothing more. Nothing less."

Lily did a double take, "That's…interesting. Thank you, Black."

Sirius nodded, and stepped forward to open the large, double oak, doors.

"Wait, we haven't heard James's five words," Peter pointed out. Lily was about to agree, when she heard her own name being called.

Sheridan was standing in the Entrance Hall, having waited for her. Lily immediately forgot everything else, running over to hug him.

James stared at the sight, his heart sinking. In the end, he muttered, "The one that got away."


	2. Chapter 2

Author's Note: Thank you for the reviews, already. I'll try to update this as frequently as possible, providing that you guys enjoy it. A story's only as good as it's reviews.

Chapter Two

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'_Or a beautiful sunrise. There's so much they hold.'_

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'_Find a place inside where there's joy, and the joy will burn out the pain.' – Anonymous_

Lily Evans was not happy. She had just suffered one of the worst weeks of her life; one that was filled with her running around after the younger students, while still juggling her own schoolwork, all while trying to maintain a personal life.

It had definitely been a long week, and it wasn't over yet. She was nearly there, though. It was Friday afternoon, and the only class Lily had left was Divination.

Lily ascended the winding staircase, with little excitement. The Divination classroom was filled with a dim, crimson light. The thick curtains on the windows were closed, making it nearly impossible to see. It was roasting, due to the large fire in the grate. Suffocating fumes drifted through the air, and Lily nearly gagged. Instead, she took her place in one of the oddly shaped chairs.

Professor Scelestia entered, looking very jittery. She was a frail, old, woman with wild, silver, hair andequally wild eyes.

"Good evening," she said, her voice rather raspy, "As fate would have it, this is our last year," Professor Scelestia continued, "Though, I sense that it is going to be an interesting one. Now then, I can assure you that we will be working hard. It's NEWTs year, after all."

The class groaned, and Lily nearly joined in. Of course it was NEWTs year. How could they forget, what with the teachers reminding them at every moment.

Professor Scelestia frowned at the lack of enthusiasm, "For day, however, you will merely be reflecting."

She crossed the room, adding several powders to the fire, until it was bright purple, "I want each and every one of you to confront your demons."

Several feet away, James raised his hand, "Professor, can't you just See whether or not we pass the NEWTs and spare us?" Lily scoffed at him, pulling out her textbook.

Lily was one of the few students to admit that she truly enjoyed school. She flourished in the different classes, and always earned high marks. The teachers simply adored her, and treated her as something of a role model for the others.

"Look at Miss Evans," Professor McGonagall would say, "Watch as she transforms her quill into a small bird, without setting it ablaze."

"Everyone, see what Miss Evans has done with her time," Professor Flitwick would chirp, "She's already completed her assignment, with ten minutes to go. Well done, dear."

"Honestly, perhaps I should pair you up with Miss Evans," Professor Sprout would snap, "She's the only one in this greenhouse who has successfully removed the prickles from her plant."

Lately, however, the professors had gone from showing off Lily to simply expecting the best from her. Lily was barely getting any sleeping, working well into the night to please everyone. Still, it never seemed as though it was enough.

Everyone always expected more and more from her. As if it wasn't bad enough, they were always comparing the other students to her.

Again and again, the professors would ask the same question: Why can't you be more like Lily?

Lily now shook her head, looking stunned. She glanced at the clock, and saw that she had wasted over a quarter of an hour by daydreaming.

"That's it, dear," Professor Scelestia said behind her, making her jump, "Just focus on what's causing you so much turmoil."

Lily cleared her throat, "I'm fine, Professor."

"Now, don't be modest," Professor Scelestia sighed, "You are closer to your inner-self than anyone else. If only they were like you."

Lily swallowed a sigh, nodding. Why did everyone have to compare themselves to her. Just thinking about Petunia brought tears to Lily's eyes. Petunia was two years older than her, but the gap was enough. There was a time when the two sisters would be inseparable. Petunia was Lily's role model. Now, her sister wouldn't even spare her a passing glance, without criticizing her for being a witch.

Lily sometimes felt as though she was stuck in the middle. She was treated as something of an alien by her sister, for being a witch. At school, however, half of the students treated her harshly for being Muggle Born, despite her high marks. Lily would often be unfazed about the comments, but they were rather harsh.

"Mudblood…freak…"

Lily gazed into the flickering, amethyst, flames. The room was suddenly way too warm. Lily felt several beads of sweat trickle down her face. She suddenly found herself resisting the urge to vomit.

"Are you alright?" Alice asked, her voice coming from a long ways off.

Lily shook her head, raising her hand, "Professor, I forgot that I had a Heads' meeting to go to."

Without waiting for her reply, Lily gathered her supplies and quickly left the room. She didn't stop until she was three floors down. She slumped against the wall of the corridor, bringing her knees to her chest. She remained this way for quite a while. In fact, she didn't look up until she heard someone say, "All right, Red?"

James was standing several feet away, grinning down at her.

"Leave me alone, Potter," Lily said shortly, before saying, "Wait, what did you call me?"

James merely snickered. Lily felt her cheeks burn, "What are you doing here? Class isn't over."

"Didn't you hear?" James said, sardonically, "We have a Heads' meeting."

Lily glowered, "Alright, you blackmailing pig, what do you want?"

James threw back his head and laughed, "I'm not blackmailing you, Evans. I'm just intrigued. You've never lied to a Professor, before."

"I just needed to get out of that room," Lily sighed, "I needed to get…away."

To her surprise, James tilted his head, "And yet, you're sitting in plain view, in a well-commuted corridor. Ah, Evans, follow me."

"Why, in Merlin's name, would I do that?" Lily snapped.

"Do you trust me?" James responded, in his ever so cheerful voice.

"Not on your life," Lily said, through gritted teeth. James didn't seem at all fazed, and instead bent down, giving her a hand up. He then set off, walking through the school, and leading her outside.

"Where, pray tell, are we going?" Lily sighed, irritated.

"Patience, Red," James winked.

Lily growled, completely vexed, but something stopped her from turning around. She only stopped, when they reached the Forbidden Forest.

"I'm a Head Girl, Potter," Lily spat, "I'm not supposed to be going into there, and neither are you. Come to think of it, I am not above giving you a detention, right here."

"Well, Miss Head Girl," James said, sardonically, "If you'd stop screeching for a moment, you'd notice that we're not going into the forest."

James pulled out an intricate looking pocket watch. It was silver, and instead of numbers, consisted of a series of moons and stars. Seeing Lily's curious glance, James said, "It was my father's. He gave it to me for my turning of age."

"Charming," Lily put a hand to her hip, "Now you can record how much of my time you're wasting."

"You said that you wanted to get away," James pointed out, "I'm merely fulfilling your request."

By now, they had reached the lake. James didn't stop there, however, and instead started climbing the steep slope on the far side of it.

"Where are you going?" Lily heaved.

James didn't answer. The trees thickened, threatening to turn into the forest. Still, he kept on climbing.

"Pick up the pace, Red," he called, "Otherwise, we'll never make it in time."

"Potter, if you do not tell me what you're up to," Lily seethed, "I will personally hex you so many times, that you won't be able to sit right, for a month."

"There's that lovely screeching," James teased, "Keep your hair on, we're nearly there."

He straightened up, "Aha! There we are."

He pointed to a thicket of dense trees, "In there, if you please. Mind your step, though."

Lily rolled her eyes, deciding to humor him. She made her way through the trees, getting terribly scratched in the process.

When she came out, she nearly gasped. She was standing on a large overhang of the cliff, which overlooked the lake. Directly across from them, sitting high on the cliff was Hogwarts. The school was basking in the reds and pinks of the sunset, which were also reflected in the lake. The trees blocked anyone else from seeing them, yet they could see everything.

"It's beautiful," Lily whispered, sitting down.

"Yeah," James agreed, vaguely, "We found this spot in our second year. We mostly just come up here, to clear our heads. It's the perfect spot to get away."

Lily didn't say anything, and merely watched as the sun slowly settled behind the mountains. Eventually, thousands of stars surfaced, littering the inky sky.

She stood up, abruptly, "I have to go. People will be wondering where I am."

James snorted, "Yes, Merlin forbid people find out that you associated with me."

Lily shivered, and turned to leave. She stopped for a moment, before murmuring, "Thank you, Potter."

She quickly descended the slope, and was halfway across the grounds when she realized that she was smiling. James Potter had actually succeeded in cheering her up.

"Oh, bugger!" Lily hissed.

It certainly was a horrid week.


	3. Chapter 3

Author's Note: Thank you for the constructive comments, everyone. I've done tons of research about the Marauders era; you would think that I'd remember the small detail that Professor Trelawny didn't teach during their time. It completely slipped my mind. Anyway, the mistake has been fixed. I know that the last chapter was rather small, but I hope that these next two will make up for it. I will upload them simultaneously, and I'll try to get Chapter 5 up tomorrow. Reviews are always welcome.

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'_And just like them old stars, I see that you've come so far."_

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"_I__want to be someone that can spark tears from your anger. I want to be someone that you go to when you're sad or angry. I want to be someone who you will fight in order to keep you. Most importantly, I want to be someone that stays in your memories long after I have left your life." — Unknown_

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Chapter Three

She hated them. She absolutely loathed them.

Lily stomped down the corridor, practically seething with anger. Her robes were stained, and a faint smell was wafting from them. Her eyes were blazing, and one of them seemed to be twitching ever so slightly.

Lily's mother didn't believe in such words as 'hate'.

"You cannot hate someone forever, dear," she would sigh at the dinner table.

Well that was all well and good, but she has clearly not met any of the Marauders. Or more specifically, James Potter and Sirius Black.

Lily couldn't bring herself to truly hate the other two. After all, Lupin was often kind to her, and the two were definitely good acquaintances, if not friends. Besides, he was the voice of reason in their little group. Peter most certainly wasn't her friend, seeing as how he was always tagging along with James and Sirius's ideas. Then again, it wasn't his fault that his friends were such bastards.

The thing that Lily hated most about the Marauders, however, was that everyone else seemed to like them. They were famous, throughout the school. Underclassmen looked up to them, and the teachers always seemed to be lenient when it came to their punishments. It was a horrible example, indeed.

One of the worst parts was that, no matter how hard she tried to avoid them, the four would always seem to involve her in one thing or another. Sirius would randomly find her in the corridors, asking her if she knew where the closest fire extinguisher was, and of course he couldn't use his wand, because that was the thing that was on fire. Or, would she happen to know how to make an antidote for doxy venom, with time being a significant factor? Or, would she know how many stink pellets an ordinary cat is supposed to eat, because some just happened to end up in Mrs. Norris's food dish?

Lupin would always find her, when things were really out of hand. He would always be polite, and would hate to bother her, but would mention that Peter was being threatened with a month's worth of detention, and if she could go talk to Professor McGonagall, it would be much appreciated. Or, he would ask her if he could copy her notes, because the four had skipped class, and Lupin didn't want to fall behind.

James was the worst. Lily could hardly go a day, without James asking her out. When he wasn't flirting with her, he was going around jinxing people from left to right. How he could possibly think that they could be together, was beyond her. This was precisely why she hated him.

Right now, however, Lily especially hated the Marauders for placing a Dungbomb into her bag. Which was why, upon entering the Gryffindor Common Room, she found herself shrieking, "Potter, you are a complete toerag!"

The words echoed through the room, but Lily hardly cared at this point. She stomped towards James, who was sitting at a table, with Lupin and Sirius. James smiled, innocently, "Good evening, Evans."

"What happened, Lily?" Lupin asked, shocked.

"I went to open my bag, and it set a Dungbomb off," Lily seethed.

James raised an eyebrow, "You ought to be more careful with where you place your Dungbombs."

"It's not my Dungbomb!" Lily roared, "You snuck it in there!"

"As hilarious as that would be," James said, "I didn't touch your bag."

Lily groaned, but any retort was lost to her exhaustion. Finally she muttered, "Why can't you lot just act your age?"

She went to head up to her dormitory, when James called after her, "I will if you will."

Lily turned, "What's that supposed to mean?"

James, however, didn't get a chance to continue. The portrait hole opened, and Peter rushed in.

"What's wrong, mate?" Sirius asked, alarmed.

Peter was wheezing too loudly for them to make anything out. He held a stitch in his side, before handing James a copy of the Daily Prophet.

"What does it say?" Lupin asked.

James swallowed, "Half a dozen Muggle Borns were murdered last night, along with their families."

All eyes turned to Lily, whose anger quickly faded, "Where?"

"London," James said, promptly.

Lily shook her head, "Why would they even target their families? They did nothing wrong."

"They're Death Eaters, Evans," Sirius said, grimacing, "Who knows why they do anything?"

Lily nodded, her stomach churning, "Great. As if I didn't have enough to worry about; now, I have to worry about being murdered in my sleep."

She broke off, overwrought and unaware that she had begun to pace.

"That's a rational fear," Lupin said, slowly, "But Lily, you're at Hogwarts. You're completely safe."

Lily whirled around, "What about Petunia and my parents? I can't very well bring them to Hogwarts."

"I thought that you hated Petunia," James interjected.

"That doesn't mean that I want to have her killed!" Lily cried, aghast.

She broke off, knowing that they would never understand. Grabbing her bag, she whirled around, blinking back tears.

She didn't stop, until she reached the courtyard. Sheridan was sitting under a large oak tree, and looked up with alarm, when he saw how upset she was.

"Lily, what's wrong?" he asked, tenderly.

Lily explained the entire situation, and Sheridan put his arms around her. Immediately, Lily felt better, snuggling close to him.

"I suppose that I was acting silly," she finally murmured.

"You were a bit paranoid," Sheridan agreed, "But that's perfectly okay. You just need to weigh the odds, and you'll see how unlikely it is that your family will be in danger."

"You're right," Lily smiled, "You're always right."

Sheridan smiled, but his nose wrinkled, "Merlin, Lily, what has become of your robes?"

Lily's heart skipped a beat, and she felt her cheeks flame. With everything that had happened, she had forgotten about the Dungbomb.

She mumbled something quite unintelligent, performing the necessary spells to clean herself up.

"There," she said, still embarrassed, "Do I look better?"

"You look perfect," Sheridan remarked, favorably.

Lily kissed him, before glancing up at the branches of the tree. The leaves were beginning to transform into vibrant colors of red and gold.

"It's beautiful," Lily commented.

Sheridan glanced down at her, "It's just a tree. _You're_ beautiful."

Lily forced a smile, but her mouth fell at the edges. She quickly busied herself with rummaging through her satchel. Bother! Why couldn't she have Mary's organization skills? Growing ever impatient, she finally found her Transfiguration book.

"Would you mind quizzing me?" Lily sighed, "Professor McGonagall's testing us, tomorrow."

"You already know it all," Sheridan said, sweetly.

"Please," Lily said, rubbing her temple.

Sheridan flipped the book open to the proper page, "What is the spell that's commonly used to transform small creatures into a bird?"

"_Avis_," Lily said, promptly.

Sheridan raised his eyebrow, "No, dear, it's _Avifors_. _Avis_ is an incantation used to shoot birds from your wand. It's not even taught in Transfiguration."

"Right," Lily's cheeks reddened, "Of course. I'm sorry, I must be tired."

Suddenly, another voice cut in, "What use is _Avifors_, anyway? If you're stuck in a position where you need to conjure a bird, it's much easier to shoot one from your wand than to find a small creature."

James was standing before them, haughty as ever.

Lily sighed, "What do you want now, Potter?"

"We've been summoned," James said, dramatically waving a piece of parchment, "Dumbledore wants to see us."

Lily groaned, "What did you do, this time?"

"Always accusing," James snickered, "Relax, Red. He said that he wanted to review our first two weeks as the Heads."

"What did you call her?" Sheridan asked, half-rising.

"Red," Lily rolled her eyes.

Sheridan gave a start, "Is that you're nickname?"

"Apparently," Lily muttered.

James grinned, "Are you coming?"

"We're rather busy," Sheridan pointed out.

"He's the Headmaster, Sheridan," Lily stood up, "I'll see you, later."

"I'll be waiting," Sheridan said, a hint of suspicion in his voice.

Lily and James walked to Dumbledore's office, in sheer silence.

James finally broke it, by asking, "So, are you alright?"

"Why wouldn't I be?" Lily said, her voice rather high. She mentally noted that if she had a Galleon for every time that she was embarrassed this month, she would be rich by now.

"You seemed pretty distraught earlier," James pointed out, "Though I guess a few snogs from Sherry will fix anything."

"Excuse me?" Lily cried, but decided that it was best to just drop it.

"Have you got the password?" Lily asked, as they approached the ancient gargoyle.

"I thought that you knew it," James replied.

"Why would I know the password?" Lily snapped, heatedly, "You're the one who's constantly getting in trouble."

"You're the one who's constantly achieving awards," James said, contemptuously, "Keys to the school, golden statues erected…"

"You're so funny," Lily bit, "Well, I'm not just going to stand here, looking like an idiot."

She went to leave, but had barely gotten to the end of the corridor, when the gargoyle sprang aside, and Professor Dumbledore came out. He was an ancient looking wizard with long silver hair and a beard that reached his stomach. His face had several more wrinkles in it than last year, but he was smiling and his bright blue eyes twinkled beneath his half-moon glasses.

"Where are you going, Miss Evans?" he called.

Lily quickly hurried back, "The lavatory, Professor. I can wait."

She and James followed Dumbledore inside, and up the winding staircase. Next to her, James murmured, "That's the second time you've lied to a Professor."

"Shut it," Lily hissed, before faking a smile as they entered the office.

Dumbledore conjured up two comfortable chairs, before taking his place at his desk.

"Now, how have your first few weeks of school been?" he asked, kindly.

"It's been fine, sir," Lily said, as James shrugged.

"I'm glad," Dumbledore smiled, "Now then, there are a few things that you need to know about being the Head Boy and Head Girl."

He gestured to a small dish of jelly slugs on his desk, "Please, help yourselves."

James grabbed a handful, but Lily politely declined.

"Well then, do you have any questions about your positions?" Dumbledore asked.

"Why did you pick us?" Lily burst out.

Dumbledore didn't seem at all fazed by the question, and instead said, "I have my reasons."

Lily and James exchanged glances, but whatever the reasons were, Dumbledore didn't seem willing to list them. Instead, he said, "Believe me when I say that I think I made the right choice. However, if you feel that the responsibilities are too strenuous, you may resign."

"Of course not," Lily said, quickly. She had made it this far. She was not going to back down, no matter how hard it got, "Of course, I can't speak for Potter."

James didn't answer, and was looking rather thoughtful.

"You don't have to answer right now," Dumbledore assured him, "But should a situation arise, just know that the option is there. I would like to point out that you two will have to work together. I understand that you've had several rows in the past. I trust that these will not get in the way of your responsibilities?"

"Yes, Professor," James and Lily promised.

Dumbledore nodded, his eyes twinkling. He ruffled through several papers, "Now then, there are several perks to being the Head Boy and Head Girl. The Prefects' bathroom is now open to you. You will need to use a sign-up sheet that will be posted every week, to reserve your spot."

Dumbledore then explained how it was their main duty to help enforce the rules of Hogwarts, and keep the younger students in check. He told them that they now have the power to take and give house points to students. They also had the ability to give out detentions, so long as a teacher signed the detention slip. He explained how Wednesday and Saturday nights would find them patrolling the corridors after hours, to ensure that the students were in bed.

When he was finished, he reminded them that should they have any questions, they can come to his office at any time.

They thanked him, before leaving.

Sirius, Peter, and Lupin were waiting for James in the corridor.

"I told you that he was in there," Sirius grinned, waving what appeared to be a regular piece of parchment.

"What did you do?" Lupin sighed.

"Why does everyone always ask me that?" James mused.

"Did Dumbledore at least have any good sweets?" Peter asked, licking his lips.

James laughed, "We can probably sneak down to Hogsmeade, this Saturday night."

"Excuse me," Lily spoke up, "I am standing right here."

"Oh, where are my manners?" James said, "Evans, would you care to join us?"

"I most certainly would not," Lily snapped, "It's against school rules."

Lupin grimaced, "I suppose you're right."

"Relax," James grinned, "If we get any points taken away from us, I can just reward them back."

"It doesn't work like that, Potter," Lily sighed, "You don't know the first thing about being a Head Boy."

She was suddenly struck with an idea; one that was both malevolent and brilliant.

"Potter, maybe you should just resign," she said, carefully, "After all, you hate anything to do with authority. This way, someone more qualified can worry about it."

"Mm," James said, seeing right through her, "Someone like Sherry?"

"Don't call him that!" Lily cried, "And that is completely preposterous."

"Is it?" James said, contemptuously.

"I'm just saying," Lily seethed, "That if you want to leave, I would completely understand."

"Well, thank you for understanding," James said, "But I don't want to resign."

Lily internally groaned, but instead said, "It's going to be a lot of pressure."

"I can handle it," James said, his smile expanding.

"Are you sure?" Lily pressed, wringing her hands.

"Evans," James sniggered, "If you want me to resign, just say so."

Neither one of them seemed to notice that their voices had risen, vibrating around the corridor. Lupin, Peter, and Sirius were all standing in the corner, rather awkwardly.

"I don't want you to resign," Lily snapped.

"Good," James grinned, "Then, I'll see you tomorrow night, when we patrol the corridors.

"Fine," Lily chirped.

"Fine," James repeated, "By the way, Red, earlier today you nicked a Dungbomb from a second year. That is the same Dungbomb that exploded in your bag."

When Lily had no reply, James smirked, "I'll see you tomorrow, Red."

The four left, laughing. Lily stared after them, remembering why she hated them so much.


	4. Chapter 4

Author's Note: Also, I have a tumblr account. My username, by design, is also Marauders4EVR. Feel free to check it out, but expect a lot of fangirling.

()()()()()()()()()()

'_To be right where you are. How old is your soul?'_

()()()()()()()()()()

"_I'm not going to change the way I look or the way I feel to conform to anything. I've always been a freak. So I've been a freak all my life and I have to live with that, you know. I'm one of those people."__  
__** —**__**John Lennon**__  
_

Chapter Four

He was late. Of course, he was late. Why wouldn't he be late? James Potter was obviously above the laws of time.

Lily hugged her robes close to her, as she wandered down the corridor. It was a quarter past ten, on the following Saturday. She was on the fourth floor, where they had agreed to meet. Ordinarily, the Heads would divide the floors amongst themselves. Lily, however, was not planning on letting James out of her sight.

It was a curious thing to walk amongst your school, after hours. The torchlight flickered off of the stone walls, and it was both beautiful and ominous.

Lily tapped her foot, impatiently, checking her watch. She had half a mind to return to the Common Room. After all, if he wasn't going to commit, why should she?

Before she could make up her mind, he came running up the corridor, "Sorry about that, Evans."

"It's fine," Lily snapped, "Let's just get this over with. I don't think that we should split up, though."

James raised his eyebrows, "Ah, so you want to stick together, eh? Just you and me, alone…"

Lily glared at him, "Professor Dumbledore said that we're supposed to go through the corridors and ensure that nobody is out of bed. I suppose we should get started."

James laughed, "That certainly sounds tempting, but I think that I have a better idea."

He pulled out a piece of parchment, gazing at it as if it would solve all of their problems.

"Stop fooling around, Potter," Lily scoffed.

"Ah Evans," James shook his head, "So naïve to the endless possibilities."

"Watch and learn, Evans," he said, pointing his wand at the parchment, "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good."

Lily stared, fascinated, as ink spread across the piece of parchment. Soon, she found herself staring at what appeared to be a scale map of Hogwarts.

"The map normally has hundreds of dots walking around," James explained, "Each dot represents a person, as indicated by their name beneath."

Lily saw that most of the dots were stationed in their proper dormitories, with the exception of the prefects, who each took turns at different posts.

James scanned it, "Moony is already down in the Entrance Hall."

"How is he?" Lily asked, gently.

"Come again?"

"I know that his mother was having a lot of medical problems," Lily said, "He, himself, always seems to look sickly."

"He's been through a lot in his life," James agreed, "Nothing that he can't handle, though."

Lily had a feeling that James wasn't telling her everything, but she realized that it was his right to.

James, meanwhile, was frowning at the map, "The only one that seems to be out of place is Frank."

"Frank Longbottom?" Lily asked, astonished. Frank was well-liked by many students, including Lily. He was also a seventh year, in Ravenclaw with Sheridan. Frank was the type of person who was friendly to everyone. He was hardworking, polite, and one of the only few sincere men at Hogwarts.

"He's in the corridor below us," James pointed out, "Isn't he supposed to be patrolling the Dungeons?"

"I can't remember," Lily admitted, "What are you thinking?"

"Well, I know that if I was sneaking around at night, it would be because I'm off to see a bird," James said.

For some reason, Lily felt her temper flare, "Oh? And how many times have you snuck out?"

Perhaps James would've given her an answer, but at that moment he became distracted, "Hang on, Alice just left the dormitory."

This immediately got Lily's attention, "What is she up to?"

James smiled, "She's going to see Frank. Are the two of them dating?"

"Not that I'm aware of," Lily said, mildly surprised, "Should we stop them?"

"Let them have their fun," James said.

Lily put her hands to her hips, "Potter, we're the Head Boy and Head Girl. It's our job to ensure that nobody is causing mischief."

"Alice and Frank are two of the most unalloyed students in this school," James pointed out, "I don't think that we have anything to worry about."

He sat down, with his back against the wall. Lily reluctantly joined him, but not before saying, "I don't know if I like the idea of watching over everyone. I feel like we're invading their privacy."

"Ordinarily, you'd probably be right," James agreed, "But, seeing as we're the Head Boy and Head Girl, we have an obligation to ensure that people are behaving."

Lily didn't buy a single word of what he said, but she was too exhausted to argue the point.

The two sat in silence for a while, staring at the still dots on the map. Eventually, Alice returned back to the dormitory, and the map remained stagnant.

A clock overhead struck midnight.

"Favorite band?" James yawned, looking for something to distract them from their stupor.

Lily thought for a moment, before saying, "The Beatles."

"Yeah, they're alright," James agreed, "I'm more for the Weird Sisters."

Lily tilted her head, "Aren't your parents wizards? How do you even know about the Beatles?"

"Everyone knows who the Beatles are," James laughed, "Wizard or not. Besides, my parents always wanted me to embrace the Muggle culture."

"Well, it seems as though they're the only ones who do," Lily sighed.

James opened his mouth, but decided that it was best not to comment.

Lily truly appreciated that, and asked, "Favorite dessert?"

"Turkish delight," James said promptly, "It's bloody addicting. Of course, I know that yours is apple cobbler."

"How did you know that?" Lily asked, stunned.

James shrugged, "It's the only dessert that you ever seem to eat in the Great Hall. Favorite Quidditch team?"

"I don't follow any," Lily admitted. She laughed at his horrified expression, before asking, "Do you believe in fate?"

James raised an eyebrow, "What kind of question is that?"

"Do you?" Lily asked, in a rather small voice.

James stared at her, not answering right away. In reality, he didn't believe in fate. He never fancied the idea of knowing that his life was set in stone. He wanted the ability to control his own life, instead of putting it into the hands of a supernatural force. He could've told Lily all of this, but instead he merely said, "No."

Lily was clearly surprised, but didn't question it. Instead, she asked, "What are you planning on doing after Hogwarts?"

To her surprise, James looked distressed, "I haven't the faintest. I wanted to be an Auror, but the Ministry seems to be more corrupted, every day. I overhead Dumbledore talking to Professor McGonagall about starting his own division of fighters. Maybe I can talk to him about joining in. What about you?"

"I don't know, either," Lily said, "Petunia said something, before term started, about how it would be nice when I finally graduated, so that we could be a proper family."

James blinked, "Doesn't she know that being a witch doesn't just go away, once you graduate?"

"I assume that she does," Lily admitted, "I think that she just expects me to forget that all of this ever happened. Then, we can go back to how things used to be."

To her surprise, James looked thoughtful, "I think everyone feels that way, now and then: If only things were how they used to be."

Lily's eyes were drawn to three dots in the Slytherin Common Room: Avery, Muliciber, and Snape.

Lily felt something catch in her throat. Much like her and Petunia, there was a time when Lily and Severus Snape were inseparable. He was the one who pulled Lily into the world of magic. Upon entering Hogwarts, Lily and Snape promised each other that being in separate houses meant nothing. They wouldn't live up to the stereotypes of Gryffindor and Slytherin. Unfortunately, Snape broke his promise, the moment he had called her a Mudblood, in their fifth year. It was then that Lily realized that Slytherin had changed him, and that their friendship was shattered.

"Do you miss him?" James asked, causing Lily to jump, "Snivellus, I mean."

"What?" Lily cried, shocked.

"It's a simple question," James shrugged.

"Yes," Lily said. When James looked upset, Lily smirked, "It's a simple answer."

James relaxed, but still looked rather dismayed.

Lily fumbled with a loose thread in her robes. Finally, she said, "I suppose that I miss the idea of having a true friend. Alice and I are close, of course, and Marlene and Mary are perfectly nice, but it just isn't the same."

James tilted his head, "Evans, you're one of the most well-known students, in this school. Everyone in this school loves you; except, perhaps, the Slytherins."

Lily shook her head, "It's not the same, Potter. I don't just want someone to smile at me in the corridor, or help me with my homework. You're right, there are dozens of people who do that, already. I want a friend who I can confide in. A friend who I never have to hide from. A friend who is unfathomable."

"Hmm," James said, "Well, what about us?"

Lily looked up, truly stunned, "Us? Potter, you and I are not friends. You are the constant source of turmoil in my life."

"Fair enough," James shrugged. He rummaged through his robes, pulling out a box of rather squished Bertie Botts Every Flavored Beans. He offered them to Lily, who refused.

"I don't get you, Evans," James said, musingly.

"I'd just prefer to not eat anything that came out of your pocket," Lily said, shortly.

James laughed, "Not that. You keep going on about how you want an unfathomable friend like Snivellus or your sister, but they were perfectly horrid to you."

"They were not," Lily said, hastily, "Besides, that's mean."

"I'm just saying," James went on_, _"A true friend would never expect you to change who you are."

Lily suddenly felt something clench in her throat. She pretended to busy herself by tying her shoe, but as always, James could see right through her.

"Hey," he said, sounding very alarmed, "Are you crying?"

"Of course not," Lily said, meekly, "It's just allergies."

James chuckled, "Have you ever actually succeeded in lying to anyone?"

"Are you joking?" Lily asked, taking deep breaths, "I feel as though half of my life is a lie. I'm always trying to please everyone. Petunia, Severus, Sheridan, the professors…"

She looked up, "You have no idea how lucky you are, Potter. You go through life, with absolutely no worries. You don't have to care what others think of you. You just do whatever you feel like."

"Just because I was born in the sixties, doesn't mean I'm a hippie, Evans," James laughed, "I stress about certain things, every day. Things that would make your pretty, little, head spin. But you're right, I don't have to worry about what other people think. It's my life."

Lily nodded, settling herself down.

"Well," James said, brightly, "This certainly was an interesting first night of rounds."

Lily laughed, in spite of herself, "We still have six more hours to go."

No sooner had she said that, than she found that her eyes were beginning to droop. Emotionally exhausted, she decided that she would take a quick power nap.

It seemed that her eyes had just closed, when someone whispered, "Lily, wake up."

Lily's eyes flew open. She realized that sun was pouring through the windows. She also realized, with horror, that her head was resting on James's shoulder. He was out cold, snoring rather loudly.

Lupin was crouched before them, smiling.

Lily quickly leapt up, though she found herself taking care as to not wake James. Lupin tilted his head, noting this.

"Sorry," Lily whispered, "We weren't asleep all night, I promise."

"Don't worry about it," Lupin chuckled, "I fell asleep for a while, as well. In fact, I only woke up when Professor Slughorn accidently stepped on me. He wanted me to remind you two that the first Slug Club party is this weekend."

Lily groaned. Professor Slughorn taught Potions, and he was very selective. Every year, he would invite his favorites to parties and celebrations. Professor Slughorn always invited Lily, regardless. Lupin was always invited, as well, due to him being a Prefect.

Down below, James groaned, "What's that about a slug?"

Lupin laughed, giving him a hand up, "Slughorn's party is this weekend. He said that, due to you being the Head Boy, you are officially invited."

"Brilliant," James said, sarcastically.

Lily smiled, understandingly, "You're allowed to bring a guest."

"Brilliant!" James repeated, his tone completely changed. He turned to Lupin, "I can bring Padfoot and you can bring Wormtail. We'll crash the party."

"Perhaps you shouldn't be talking about crashing the party right here," Lupin said, nervously eyeing Lily.

Lily, however, was too tired to care, "Just don't do anything illegal."

"No promises," James said, quite seriously.

"Well, I'm off to see Sheridan," Lily sighed, "At least I don't have to worry about him plotting the world's demise."

James frowned, "Hey Evans, just remember something: We would never ask you to change."

He gestured to himself and Lupin, who looked confused, but nodded in agreement. James went on, "Sirius and Peter would never ask you to, either."

Lily stared at him, mystified. James wasn't finished, "However, in this case, I would recommend that you change your robes. You seemed to have sat on my Bertie Botts Every Flavored Beans."

Lily glanced down, and saw that he was right. She rolled her eyes, "Thank you, Potter."

She faltered before adding, "For everything."

"You're quite welcome," James said.

As she walked away, Lily pondered James's advice. She realized how hypocritical it was. After all, Lily couldn't remember a time when she had ever had a decent conversation with him, other than last night.

Here he was telling her not to change, when he was changing himself. Then again, not all changes were bad.


	5. Chapter 5

Author's Note: 09/23/12: I'm sorry that I haven't uploaded in a few weeks. I promise that I haven't given up on this story.

()()()()()

_I won't give up on us_

_Even if the skies get rough_

()()()()()

When Lily was only nine years old, she was able to perform small spurts of magic. She could soar through the air for several seconds, cause a flower to bloom and shrivel, and successfully heal several a bird that had fallen out of a nest in the backyard. By the time she came to Hogwarts, Lily knew more about magic than most seventh years. When she was only fifteen, she earned more OWLs than the entire Slytherin house, combined.

Suffice to say, Lily Evans was a very bright witch. As Remus would say, she was the brightest witch of her age. However, no amount of intelligence could prepare her for what she was facing tonight.

Lily tugged the brush through her hair, growling ever so slightly. She had to hand it to people who always had their hair pulled back and a mask of makeup on their face. It wasn't as easy as it looked. Lily's blush was way too dark, and her eyeliner was already smudged. Her hair was simply uncooperative and her dress was uncomfortably chafing.

Lily felt her cheeks flame, as she stared into the vanity mirror. Lily was never exactly tomboyish, but she had never worried about getting truly dressed up. Her own natural beauty got her through the day, which was fine; unless you were due to attend a party.

The door to the dormitory opened, and it seemed as though Lily's prayers had been answered.

"Alice, thank Merlin," Lily wailed, "Help me!"

Alice blinked, "Lily, what are you doing?"

"I've got to attend this bloody party for Slughorn," Lily snapped, "Help me get ready."

"Blimey, is that tonight?" Alice cried, "I completely forgot about it."

"Slughorn invited you?" Lily asked, mildly surprised.

"Well, not exactly," Alice said, suddenly becoming very fidgety.

Lily stared at her for a moment, before suddenly realizing, "Frank Longbottom is a prefect."

"Why yes, I suppose he is," Alice mused.

"He got invited."

"I imagine."

"He invited you, didn't he?"

"What, that's preposterous," Alice said, her face as red as Lily's hair.

"Whose face is easy to read, now?" Lily teased, "Potter and I spotted the two of you the other night, when we were doing rounds."

"Yes, how was working with James?" Alice asked, applying her makeup and then fixing Lily's.

"Don't change the subject," Lily accused.

"I'm not," Alice said, earnestly, "I'm just surprised that you haven't said anything. Normally, you're complaining about what idiotic thing he did."

"He wasn't a complete idiot," Lily said, before crying, "This blasted dress is so hard to breathe in!"

"Well, it's no wonder," Alice mused, "The thing looks like it's been around for centuries. Wherever did you get it?"

"Petunia gave it to me," Lily sighed, "She said that it was classy. It's the only thing that I have."

"Well, we can fix that," Alice said, brightly. She crossed to her wardrobe, pulling out an emerald green halter-dress. Lily hesitated, before trying it on. It fit nicely, though it was rather large in the bust area. Lily quickly mumbled a spell, tightening the dress.

"You're so lucky, Alice Prewett," Lily sighed.

"Hardly," Alice said, trying on a strapless blue dress, "Though at least I can proudly say that everything is real. Can you believe that some witches actually use enlargement charms?"

Lily shook her head, "Birds."

"Come again?"

"Birds," Lily said, sheepishly, "That's the term that the Marauders use."

Alice held back a laugh, curling the wispy ends of her hair. Lily, meanwhile, had pulled half of hers back, leaving the bottom half in a wave.

"You look lovely," Alice praised.

Lily returned the compliment, before saying, "Let's agree to never do this, again."

()()()()()()()()()()

There was nothing like being held in the arms of someone you loved. It was the one spot where you could feel safe; where nothing else in the world mattered. Lily smiled, leaning her head against Sheridan's chest. The two were waltzing back and forth, though Lily was the first to admit that she was a horrendous dancer.

The record on the gramophone slowly came to a stop. Lily smiled, giving Sheridan a small peck on the cheek. The two then returned to their table, joining Alice and Frank.

"You two looked adorable," Alice fawned.

Lily smiled, scanning the room. Professor Slughorn was sipping a martini, humming along to the song that was no longer playing. Several first years were in the corner, looking very bashful. A group of Slytherins were standing in the corner, including Regulus Black, Macniar, Avery, and Snape. Lily was well aware that Snape was trying to catch her eye, but she quickly looked away.

It was the perfect party. Which was why, Lily wasn't surprised in the least, when everything fell apart. It started, of course, with the arrival of the Marauders.

They entered with style, each sporting a pea coat and a look of magnitude. To Lily's dismay, Alice invited them over. Frank left to get them all drinks.

"What ever are you wearing?" Alice asked, surveying James.

"Pea coats," James said, promptly, "It's a Muggle fashion."

"Any particular reason?" Sheridan asked, looking as though he regretted asking.

Lily, however, had tilted her head, "The Beatles."

James winked, before saying, "You look lovely, Red."

Lily stared at him suspiciously, but realized that he was being sincere. She thanked him.

"Alice practically had me imprisoned in the dormitory," she said.

Alice didn't deny it, and instead said, "It was worth it. Besides, I make good company."

Sirius snorted, "Yes, I can imagine. Let me guess, you girls spent half the night talking about lipstick, and eyeliner, and which boy is dreamier?"

Lily smirked, "Actually, we talked about enlargement charms."

"Lily," Sheridan said, shocked, "That's hardly appropriate.

Sirius, however, had brightened, "What a coincidence. So did we!"

James threw his head back and laughed. Lupin, meanwhile, hid his face in his hands. Peter looked back and forth, deciding not to comment.

"Moony had some excellent points," Sirius continued.

"I did not," Lupin hissed, his cheeks pink. He then mumbled something quite incoherent, before making an excuse to go up to the buffet.

He passed Frank who, upon sitting down, asked, "What did I miss?"

Alice laughed, "A very interesting conversation."

"Mm," Sheridan said, differing, "Treacle tart, Lily?"

Lily wasn't fond of them, but she took one anyway, giving Sheridan a quick kiss.

"Interesting how that butterbeer goes right through you," James said, rather loudly. He excused himself to the loo. Perhaps if he hadn't tended to his full bladder, things would've gone quite differently.

But he did, and they did.

For at that moment, Lily heard a chorus of callous laughter. To her horror, the group of Slytherins had stepped away from the corner, and were now goading Lupin, making snide comments about his coat, which was old and tattered.

Before she knew what she was doing, Lily had leapt out of her seat and crossed the room, crying, "Leave him alone!"

"It's fine, Lily," Lupin whispered. Of course things weren't bloody fine. Things were getting tenser by the minute. But Lupin wasn't about to let anyone get in trouble, for him. It was too late, however.

Her shout had attracted the others' attention. In a flash, Sirius and Peter were at her side. Sheridan joined her as well, but muttered, "Lily, you're making a scene."

"I don't care," Lily snapped, "They have no right to provoke Lupin. Just because they don't have the brains does not mean that they have to hide behind their muscles. Or lack thereof."

Regulus stepped forward, and next to her, Sirius's fists clenched. Lily often forgot that the two were brothers; they weren't alike, at all.

"You're pretty bold for a Mudblood," Regulus spat.

Lily quickly pulled out her wand. A loud crack rebounded through the room, as a jet of light hit Regulus in his face. He was out cold before he even hit the floor.

For a split second, Lily was thrown off. She then saw that Sirius looked livid, his eyes fiery, his own wand smoking. He raised it a second time, but Lily grabbed his arm, "Sirius, no!"

It was too late. As if a trigger had been set off, a fierce duel commenced, between Lupin, Peter, Sirius, Avery, Snape, and Macnair. Frank and Alice leapt up, regretfully joining in. Spells and hexes bounced off of the walls, overturning tables, and shattering statues. Food was sent flying, and the butterbeer spilled onto the floor in a mixture of foam and glass.

Lily quickly hurried over to the first years, quickly pushing them out of harm's way.

"Now you've done it," Sheridan whispered, "Come on, let's get out of here."

Lily might've agreed, had a spell not sent Lupin to his knees. Snape stood in front of him, looking victorious. He raised his wand once more.

"No!" Lily cried, leaping in between them. Snape faltered, giving Lily enough time to help Lupin to his feet.

"Don't just stand there, Snape!" Macnair growled, "Give that bloody Mudblood a message."

When Snape remained still, Lily cried, "What, you're too good to jinx me, Severus? But you've jinxed other people with my blood status. What should make me any different?"

Snape mumbled something about them being friends.

"Friends?" Lily laughed, coldly, "We are not friends, anymore, Snape. Perhaps we never were."

"We were!" Snape spluttered, "We were friends. That was before…"

"Before you changed?" Lily took a step forward, "You didn't have to change. You are so obsessed about the Dark Arts, that you'd do anything. You are a coward."

Neither she nor Snape nor Lupin noticed that Avery had raised his own wand, until he sent a hex towards her. Lily whirled around, but someone leapt in between them, carelessly deflecting the spell.

"I leave for the loo for five minutes," James joked. He raised his wand, sending Avery flying into the wall with an awful crunch.

"Now can we go?" Sheridan cried, staggering over. He hadn't fought, but instead had pulled up a large Protego spell, shielding himself.

"Not yet," Lily growled, her eyes following Snape.

"You've made your point," Sheridan said, "This fight is only escalating! We need to go!"

"If you want to go, so be it," Lily snapped, "I'm not leaving."

"I won't stand by and have you get hurt," Sheridan declared. He grabbed Lily's wrist, a bit too tightly. Lily gasped, quite surprised. It was a small gasp. But it was enough. And it made all the difference in the world. For someone else witnessed that gasp.

To James, time seemed to slow. He glanced back and forth between Sheridan and Lily, and suddenly realized something that was unnoticed by everyone else.

It's important to note that James Potter was not a man for thought. He was intelligent, of course, but when it came to a fight, he was more of an action man. He would rather fight now and think about it later. He relied on his instinct a lot, and when something seemed right, he often acted upon it. Which was why, in the midst of the chaos, James Potter thought it perfectly sensible to break Sheridan's nose.

()()()()()()()()()()

"He bwoke my nose!"

"Yes, love, so you've said," Lily sighed.

The two were squashed together, though not by choice, this time. Somehow, Professor McGonagall had managed to fit her, Sheridan, the Marauders, Alice, Frank, and the four Slytherins into her office. Lily's dress was ripped and stained, her once perfect hair now a tangled mess.

"Well, this is rather cozy, isn't it?" James murmured.

"If Peter and I get any more cozier, I think I may vomit," Sirius growled.

"You should all be ashamed of yourselves," Professor McGonagall snapped. Lily hung her head, feeling truly ashamed. Minerva McGonagall was probably her favorite professor. She was strict and demanded respect, but occasionally showed a softer side.

Right now, however, that soft side was deeply buried. Professor McGonagall peered down at the lot, through her square spectacles, before saying, "Three first years are in the Hospital Wing. Professor Slughorn was knocked unconscious…"

"Honestly Professor, I don't think we had anything to do with that one," James spoke up, as Sirius made drinking motions.

"I am taking twenty-five points from each of you," Professor McGonagall continued, "That's 100 points from Slytherin, 50 from Ravenclaw, and 150 from Gryffindor."

Lily realized that that was a rather horrible act on Professor McGonagall's part. After all, the lot had begun to settle down. As soon as she completed her sentence, however, everyone leapt up and chaos recommenced.

"Professor, that's asinine!" Lupin said, "We were defending ourselves."

"I did nothing wrong," Sheridan said, "I was the victim."

The others' yells were mixed with each other. Several more punches were exchanged, and Professor McGonagall finally had to set off several firecrackers from her wand, to settle things down.

"Fine," she snapped, "If you are all objecting, let's hear your defence."

This seemed to do the trick. For everyone quieted down, awkwardly glancing at one another.

"Let's start with you, Mister McLerry," Professor McGonagall sighed, "What happened to your nose?"

"Potter," Sheridan said, and that was really all he had to say. For Professor McGonagall nodded, as if she should've known.

"Mister Potter, would you like to tell us why you punched Mister McLerry?"

"I don't know why you're so distraught," James said, "I personally think that the look is a definite improvement."

Sirius laughed, and Lupin and Peter hid their chuckles behind a cough.

"Mister Potter…" Professor McGonagall said, warningly.

James glanced around the room, before saying, "Certainly I'll tell you, Professor. On several conditions, however."

He pointed to the group of Slytherins, demanding them to leave.

Professor McGonagall debated this, before saying, "Very well. Black, Snape, Avery, Macnair, kindly wait outside. I shall retrieve you, momentarily."

The four complied, sneering and mumbling, as they did so.

"Professor, you don't honestly think that they'll stay?" James asked, rather amused.

"I'm waiting, Potter."

"I'm getting there," James said, smoothly, "Let Alice and Frank go. They didn't do anything wrong."

"We have witnesses say that they were a part of the fight," Professor McGonagall said.

"Nah," James waved his hand, "They were just trying to stop us from acting like berks. They failed, mind you, but it was a good attempt. At least it was an interesting first date."

He glanced at both Frank and Alice, who didn't disagree.

Professor McGonagall was still hesitant.

"Professor," James finally said, "I realize that you really don't trust me. However, just think about it: What would I possibly gain by letting Alice and Frank go? It's simply a kind gesture."

"Fine," Professor McGonagall sighed, "You two are dismissed."

Frank and Alice hesitated, before finally leaving.

"Brilliant," James said, before turning to Sheridan, "Leave."

"Potter," Professor McGonagall said, warningly.

"Professor, I swear that I'll answer any of your questions, just as soon as Sherry leaves."

"Sherry?" Professor McGonagall repeated.

"Please, don't ask," Lily quickly intervened, "Sheridan, love, if you don't leave, we'll never get out of here."

"Yes, do go Mister McLerry," Professor McGonagall rubbed her temple, "It's been a long enough night, already."

"If it means punishing Potter," Sheridan murmured, trudging out.

"Right," James said, cheerfully, "The reason I punched Sherry, was that he was abusing Lily."

"What?" Professor McGonagall gaped, clearly not expecting that answer.

"What?" Sirius, Lupin, and Peter chorused, shocked.

"_What_?" Lily shrieked, horrified, "He is not! How could you…why would you even think that?"

"He grabbed your wrist," James said, simply.

"He grabbed my…?" Lily broke off, "You can't honestly believe…he wasn't hurting me, Potter."

"I misspoke," James admitted, "Him grabbing your wrist is merely a metaphor for the mental abuse that he's causing."

Lily shook her head, honestly saying, "Sheridan is one of the people students I've ever met. He's a proper gentleman."

"Yes, that's the point," James pressed.

The others merely stared at him, until Sirius finally whispered, "What are you talking about, mate?"

"Sheridan holding her back," James said, "He's keeping her from having a life."

Lily spluttered, before crying, "That's preposterous! Like it or not, Potter, Sheridan is perfect."

"There inlays the problem," James said.

"Potter, that is a ridiculous excuse," Professor McGonagall said, "Bring the others back in here, Mister Lupin."

Only Sheridan had remained. He was apparently disappointed to see that James was still in one piece, but didn't question it.

"Very well," Professor McGonagall said, "As ridiculous as your excuse is, Potter, I'm beginning to see what happened. You punched McLerry, and the fight commenced."

"No," James said, "I punched Sherry at the end of the fight."

"Well then, how did the fight even start?" Professor McGonagall asked, exasperated.

She looked at Lily, for answers.

Lily hesitated, "Well, Remus had gone up to the buffet table, where the Slytherins were…"

"Ah," Professor McGonagall jumped in, "So it all started with Mister Lupin?"

"What?" Lupin turned around, "No!"

"Yes it did," Sheridan said, "Tell her, Lily."

"Your answer, Miss Evans?" Professor McGonagall demanded.

"Come off it, Sherry!" Sirius snapped, "Remus had nothing to do with it!"

"Well technically he did," Peter pointed out. He then changed his mind, "I mean, he didn't. Well he did, but not in the way that…he did."

The four bickered and argued. Only James remained silent, staring at Lily with an unreadable expression. It was as though he trusted her to make the right decision.

"No," Lily said, finally, "Remus had nothing to do with it."

James let out a breath that he didn't know he had been holding.

"Remus went up to the buffet table," Lily continued, "I followed him, and Regulus stepped forward and began to provoke us. That's when Sirius came and hexed him."

"Mister Black, is this part true?"

"The only reason I hexed Regulus was because he made an inappropriate remark about Lily's blood status," Sirius burst out.

The whole room hushed, and all eyes fell onto Lily.

"Miss Evans, is this true?" Professor McGonagall asked.

"Yes," Lily said, her voice holding daggers of ice, "He called me a Mudblood."

A small gasp escaped from Professor McGonagall, who recomposed herself and said, "Regardless, fighting is prohibited. Therefore, I'm afraid that the points shall stand where they are. However, I will personally talk to Regulus."

"Yes, because that's exactly what Regulus needs," Sirius snarled. Without further ado, he leapt up, earning to leave the office.

James and Lily exchanged worried looks, but it was Professor McGonagall who spoke, "Mister Black, where are you going?"

Sirius whirled around, his hand on the doorknob, "Do you think that, in a few years, any of this is going to matter? When Regulus is roaming the streets, doing Voldemort's bidding, do you think that he's going to care how many house points he got?"

Professor McGonagall looked flustered, "That's a harsh accusation."

"It's not an accusation, it's a fact," Sirius roared, "He's my bloody brother, I should know. So take house points from us, throw us in detention, expel us…in a few years, it's not going to matter. Today's fights are tomorrow's wars."

With that, he wrenched open the door, stomping out.

Lily and James jumped up, simultaneously. Without waiting for a response from Professor McGonagall, they raced after Sirius, with Lupin and Peter at their heels.

Lily slipped out of her high heels, grabbing Sirius's shoulder.

"Sirius, wait," she said, quietly.

Surprised by the fact that she had used his first name, Sirius paused.

"I just wanted to thank you," Lily said, sincerely, "Thank you for standing by me."

Sirius took a deep breath, before smiling, "Don't mention it, Red."

Lily growled at the nickname, but before she could say anything, James said, "I don't get thanked?"

"You punched my boyfriend!" Lily snapped.

"Yeah, sorry about that," James admitted, "I stand by the reason, though."

"Either way," Lupin hastily intervened, "We're still sorry that we ruined your night, Lily. Though, might I point out that we didn't necessarily do anything illegal."

"Don't worry about it," Lily sighed, "Besides, you four at least make life interesting."

James chuckled, "Want to head back to the Common Room for a round of butterbeer?"

"I can't," Lily said, gesturing back to Professor McGonagall's office, "I have to check on Sheridan."

James looked disappointed, but nodded, "Yeah, I figured."

The four set off, looking rather downhearted.

Lily rolled her eyes, hating herself as she called, "Potter?"

James turned, "Yeah?"

Lily hesitated, before saying, "You're right. Sheridan's nose is definitely an improvement."

The others roared with laughter, and James looked happier than a little tyke at Christmas. Instead, he merely said, "Well, if you want, I can improve other parts of his face."

"Goodnight, Potter!"

"See you around, Red."


	6. Chapter 6

_I'm giving you all my love_

_I'm still looking up_

()()()()()

Not for the first time had Lily awoken to screaming. This time, however, the scream was out of fear.

"What's going on?" Mary asked, her face poking out from a tangle of hair.

"I don't know," Lily said, grabbing her wand, "It came from the Common Room."

She threw her bathrobe on and descended the stairs. Mary, Alice, and Marlene cautiously followed.

Lily immediately saw the source of the scream. Peter Pettigrew was backed up in a corner, surrounded by no less than a dozen spiders, each the size of a Quaffle.

Lily felt her heart skip a beat, but she then relaxed, as she spotted two pairs of eyes peering at her, from a cabinet.

She crossed the room, opening the doors.

James and Sirius tumbled out, grinning from ear to ear.

"Evans!" Sirius squealed, "Fancy meeting you, here!"

"Get rid of them," Lily sighed, gesturing to the spiders.

"Wherever did those come from?" Sirius said, feigning surprise. Nevertheless, he took out his wand and made the spiders vanish.

James chuckled, "Sorry, Peter. It was just a little Halloween prank."

"Happy Halloween," Peter grumbled, pink-faced.

"You too, mate," Sirius grinned.

The door to the boys' dormitory opened, and Lupin stumbled out. He looked rather pale and peaky.

"You okay, mate?" James asked.

"Just fine," Lupin said, shakily, "Who screamed?"

"Oh, it was nothing," Sirius waved his hand, "Just a few spiders."

"Hey, Evans," James suddenly remembered something, "I can't do the Heads' rounds, tonight."

"Let me guess," Lily said, angrily, "You four are throwing a Halloween party?"

"No, no," James said.

"Besides, after last week, I think that we've had enough parties," Lupin pointed out.

"You can never have too many parties, mate," Sirius said.

"Anyway, I can't make it," James said, rather nonchalantly, "Sorry about that."

"Well, I shouldn't have to do all of the work!" Lily retorted.

"You don't have to," James said, "Just take the night off. Stay in the Common Room."

Lily rather liked the idea, but she wasn't planning on staying in the Gryffindor Common Room. Instead, she'd steal away to the Ravenclaw Common Room, to see Sheridan. Not that they would do anything, but sit in front of the fire. Still, it was nice that they could be together. Besides, the other Seventh Years—Frank Longbottom, Gilderoy Lockhart, and Ludo Bagman—didn't mind when Lily came. The same couldn't be said for the Marauders, if Lily tried to bring Sheridan in.

Thus, at a quarter past eleven, Lily found herself sneaking through the corridors. She realized that she didn't really need to sneak. She was, after all, the Head Girl. Still, she felt almost guilty about what she was doing, even though she had done it before.

"Evans, what are you doing down here?"

Lily nearly jumped out of her skin, whipping around. James had come around the corner, and was staring at her with a peculiar expression.

"I was just monitoring this corridor," Lily said, her voice traitorously high.

James tilted his head, frowning, "Get back to the Gryffindor Common Room."

"Excuse me?" Lily's temper flared.

"It isn't a safe night to be roaming about," James said.

"I can handle myself," Lily said, putting her hands to her hips.

James suddenly looked around, as if just realizing where they were. A small groan escaped his lips, and his frown deepened, "We're near the Ravenclaw Common Room."

"Very astute," Lily said, avoiding his eye.

"I don't believe this," James said, angrily.

He suddenly turned around, and began to stomp away. Lily raised an eyebrow, racing after him, "What is your problem, Potter?"

"My problem is that I've been racing around for the past fifteen minutes, trying to find you, only to find out that you're sneaking around," James cried, fiercely.

"Well, you've found me," Lily said, crossly, "What are you going to do now? Are you going to drag me back to the Common Room?"

"No," James spat, "If you want to sneak around to shag your boyfriend, far be it from me to stop you."

"What?" Lily's shrieks rang through the corridor, "How dare you!"

James didn't answer, and instead checked his pocket watch. He swore, hurrying away.

Lily, however, was not finished, "Potter, get back here!"

She stormed back to the Grand Staircase, and glimpsed him heading into the Entrance Hall. She quickly hurried after him. By the time she reached the Entrance Hall, however, he was gone.

Lily growled, indignantly, and pushed open the oak doors, stomping outside. She was shaking with anger. Here he was, making her feel horrible for sneaking around. Then, he had the audacity to steal outside, at a quarter to midnight?

Lily walked around the grounds, keeping her eyes alert, "Potter, where are you?"

She marched down to the bank of the lake, calling his name, once more.

She squinted, scanning the grounds. Suddenly, she saw something move. Four figures were disappearing into the Forbidden Forest.

Lily's eyes widened, but quickly narrowed. Making up her mind, she crossed the grounds, entering the dark forest.

"Potter?" Lily cried, nearly spitting with anger. An animal scurried to her left, and Lily's heart skipped a beat. She kept pressing on, however.

After several minutes, she paused. The trees had become dense, and a diluted fog was rolling around them. The moon was full, but it hardly helped light her path.

"Potter?" Lily repeated, her tone entirely different.

Something was moving in the shrub, up ahead. Lily attentively stepped forward. Then, something growled, leaping out at her.

Lily shouted with fear, turning around and running as fast as she could. She could hear the animal running behind her, snarling and biting.

It was around this time that Lily remembered that she was, in fact, a witch. She pulled out her wand, turning around to jinx the creature. A jet of red light sent the beast flying.

Then, quite suddenly, something large and white sprang in between Lily and the creature. She didn't stop to see what it was, and continued to run, without any idea of where she was going.

Abruptly, she felt someone grab her. Her scream was muffled by a hand clamped over her mouth. She tried to punch and hex her perpetrator, but he cried, "Hey, hey! Lily, calm down! It's me! It's Sirius!"

Lily relaxed, but just barely. Her heart was quivering, and she felt ill.

She casted a brave look over her shoulder, and saw that the beast had reentered the shrubs, closely followed by what appeared to be an albino deer. Sirius urged her to turn around. She allowed herself to be led out of the forest. Sirius didn't say anything, though he looked rather pale. A howl pierced the air and Lily jumped. Sirius increased the pace, until the two were nearly running.

They burst out of the forest, covered with cobwebs and various insects. Sirius led her to the first thing he saw; Hagrid's hut. Fortunately, Hagrid wasn't home. In fact, he was on a mission for Dumbledore. There was no way that Lily and Sirius knew this, however.

They quickly entered, and Sirius shut and latched the door.

Lily shakily sat down at the table, too frightened to speak.

"Lily, it's alright," Sirius soothed, joining her, "Just take a few deep breaths."

Lily complied, before asking, "Was that a wolf? The thing in the shrub, I mean."

Sirius hesitated, before saying, "In a manner of speaking." Fang, the boarhound, came over. Sirius smiled, affectionately, scratching the dog's ears. His face then fell, as he saw how shaken Lily was.

"Tea?" he asked, precariously.

"No, I don't want any tea," Lily cried. Her fear had melted into anger, and she leapt up, "Potter's still in the forest!"

"Relax, Lily," Sirius chuckled, "He's fine."

No sooner had he spoken, than someone knocked on the door, causing Lily leapt up, but Sirius held her back. He cautiously crossed the room, calling, "Who is it?"

"It's Peter! Let me in, mate!"

Sirius unlocked it and Peter entered, closing it once more.

"Moony is really agitated," he squeaked, "Prongs is trying to calm him down, but he needs your help. Oh, hullo Lily."

Sirius rubbed his temple, "Always the master of secrecy, Wormtail."

Lily's jaw dropped, "Remus is in the forest? Why is he upset? Where is he?"

"Right now," Sirius muttered, "He's probably in the bushes."

Slowly, everything began to click. Lily staggered backwards, sitting down, "He's the wolf?"

Sirius and Peter exchanged glances. Finally, choosing his words very carefully, Sirius said, "Some things are better left unknown, Lily."

Lily's gaze, however, had turned fiery, "Sirius, please tell me."

Sirius looked up, surprised by the fact that she had used his first name. He shook his head, however, "I'm not sure that I'm the right one to tell you."

Peter nodded, "The only one who can tell you is Remus."

Sirius turned, "I need to get back out there. Lily, I need you to promise me that you will not leave this hut, under any circumstances."

"Are you mental?" Lily jumped up, "I'm not letting you go back out there, on your own."

"Lily, I know that you mean well, but you can't do anything," Sirius sighed, heavily.

"I'm not helpless," Lily crossed her arms.

Sirius nearly smiled, "Listen, I know that you're more than capable of fighting. Believe me, I know. But this is different. There's too much at stake."

Peter agreed, "That, and the fact that Prongs would kill me if he knew that I let you go out there."

With that, the two slipped outside. Lily relocked the door behind them, peering through the window. She couldn't see them, and instead saw what appeared to be a small rat and a large, black, dog sprinting into the forest.

Fang nudged her hand, causing Lily to jump. She sat back down at the table, overwhelmed.

The night was one of the longest of Lily's life. She sat in shock, before finally dozing off.

When she awoke hours later, she was sure that it had been a dream. She then realized that it was horribly real. Fang barked at her feet, and someone knocked on the door.

"Who is it?" Lily called, shakily.

"Who else would it be?" Sirius snorted.

Lily flushed, opening the door and muttering, "With everything that's happened…"

"Nah, you're right," Sirius said, "It was good of you to ask. The others are coming."

Sure enough, James and Peter staggered out of the forest, assisting a very battered looking Lupin.

Lily quickly stepped past Sirius, hurrying to help the three inside.

"Lily," Lupin croaked, "I'm so sorry."

He doubled over, his face suddenly green. Sirius nonchalantly grabbed a dustbin, and Lupin promptly vomited into it.

"Ah," Peter said, "That would be the pheasant carcass."

Lupin, if possible, turned greener, "You let me eat a pheasant carcass?"

"You were quite adamant," James grinned, "You growled, every time we tried to take it away from you."

"You're exaggerating," Lupin grumbled.

"Only a bit," Sirius laughed, "That's the incredible thing."

The four suddenly looked up, as though just remembering that Lily was there.

"I suppose we should explain," Lupin sighed, heavily.

"Please do," Lily said, through gritted teeth.

"Sit down," James suggested, gently. Lily complied, and the other three joined her. James then made everyone a strong mug of tea.

"Lily," Lupin said, simply, "I'm a werewolf."

"I…I figured," Lily said, shakily, "How? When?"

Lupin sighed, "When I was six years old, my father offended a werewolf, known as Greyback."

"I've heard of him," Lily whispered, "Isn't he creating an army of…of werewolves?"

"Yeah," Lupin said, heavily, "Anyway, Greyback retaliated by biting me. I'd rather not go into details. What you should know, is that every full moon I go down to the Shrieking Shack and transform."

"That's horrible," Lily said.

"It used to be," Lupin admitted, "Then, the other Marauders found out. I thought…I thought that they would shun me."

"I still can't believe you thought that," James spoke up, "We're your best friends, mate. We would never leave you for something as trivial as changing into a monster every month."

"Instead," Lupin took a deep breath, "They turned into Animagi."

"They…they turned into…that's illegal!" Lily cried.

"We did what had to be done," James said, firmly.

Lupin nodded, "James is a stag, Sirius is a dog, and Peter is a rat."

"Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs," Lily suddenly whispered. She felt like such an idiot; how could she have missed this?

"I need some air," Lily said. She slipped outside, leaning against a large tree.

She wasn't aware that James had followed her, until he asked, "Are you okay?"

"No," Lily admitted, "Why didn't he tell me? Did he not trust me?"

"It's not that he didn't trust you," James said, slowly, "He didn't trust some of the people that you associated with."

"Snape," Lily sighed, bitterly.

By now, the other three had come out.

"Yeah, him," Lupin said, apologetically, "If he found out, he would've told the entire school."

"That's true," Lily agreed, heavily, "Clearly, however, I'm no longer fraternizing with Snape."

"Yes, well…" Lupin grimaced, "There was also the matter of…"

He glanced at James for help. The latter merely said, "Sherry."

"What about him?" Lily asked.

"I didn't want him to know," Lupin admitted.

"I wouldn't have told him!" Lily cried.

"Love can make people do terrible things," Lupin explained, patiently.

"You four are my friends," Lily pressed, "That's far more significant than what…whatever Sheridan and I have."

To her surprise, the others stared at her. Finally, Sirius asked, "We're your friends?"

When Lily frowned, Sirius put his hands up, defensively, "Don't get me wrong, I'm flattered. I always just thought that you hated us."

"Why would you think that?" Lily asked.

Peter gaped at her, "You told us, repeatedly, that you hated us."

"The point is," Lily said, "This doesn't change things. Remus, I will never tell anyone."

To her surprise, the others still looked troubled.

"What is it?" Lily asked.

"Well, that's just it," James said, "We're illegal Animagi. That means that you can either turn us in…"

"I won't," Lily interrupted.

James continued, "Or, should we ever get caught, you'd become an accessory."

"I will not tell anyone," Lily said, firmly, "I don't care what the stakes are. And Remus, you can come to me for anything."

"Thank you, Lily," Lupin smiled.

The two quickly hugged. Lily then drew her cloak close to her, heading back to the school.

Sirius was right, of course. Lily would normally never count the Marauders as her friends.

Still, there was something to be admired about what they were doing, even if it was illegal.


	7. Chapter 7

Author's Note: Sorry for the short delay. Thank you for the kind reviews.

_And when you're needing your space to do some navigating_

_I'll be here, patiently waiting, to see what you find._

Chapter Seven

Lily simply wanted to go to sleep.

Was that too much to ask?

She deserved it, what with the events that took place last night.

Yet, she found herself pacing her dormitory, unable to slumber.

Was it only last night that the events took place? Lily glanced at her watch. Yes, it was only noon. She had left Hagrid's hut, no more than four hours ago. And yet, it seemed like ages.

Merlin, what was happening to her?

Lily sighed, stomping down to the Common Room. She immediately spotted Lupin, looking tattered and exhausted. He went to greet Lily, but instead promptly sneezed.

"Are you alright?" Lily asked, anxiously.

To her surprise, Lupin chuckled, "Honestly, Lily. You're acting worse than the others were, when they found out about my secret. It was a simple sneeze."

"Right," Lily said, her cheeks burning, "Sorry."

Lupin smiled, understandingly, and changed the subject by saying, "Were you able to do Flitwick's essay?"

"Damn," Lily groaned, "I completely forgot about it!"

Lupin raised his eyebrows, "That doesn't sound like you."

"Well, I've been rather busy," Lily retorted. Nevertheless, the two collected their bags, heading down to the library.

Alice and Frank were sitting at a nearby table. They smiled and waved with their free hands, their other hands intertwined.

Lily and Lupin joined them, but Lily could hardly focus on her essay. She opened her textbook, but found herself reading the same sentence over and over again. She opened her textbook, but found herself reading the same sentence over and over again. She opened her textbook, but found herself reading the same sentence over and over again. She suddenly realized how exhausted she was. The library was very warm and much too quiet.

The silence didn't last for long, however. For someone suddenly cried, "All right, Red?"

James, Peter, and Sirius had arrived, the latter having yelled. They seemed completely indifferent, as though last night simply didn't happen.

"Fine," Lily said, hastily, "Why wouldn't I be?"

"Why, indeed," James smirked.

Sirius, meanwhile, had nicked Lupin's essay and was now attempting to copy it. He handed it to Peter, who grimaced, but said, "Have you got a quill, Red?"

Lily shook her head, "Sorry, I…"

She suddenly realized what Peter had said, and cried, "Oh, no! Not you! Will you please drop the nickname?"

The others merely sniggered.

"It's not even that creative," Lily continued, "Who gives someone a nickname, just because of the color of their hair?"

James looked up at this. Finally, he said, "You think that your nickname has to do with your hair?"

"Give us a little credit," Sirius chuckled, "We're not that thick."

"Well then, what does it mean?" Lily pressed.

"That's for us to know," James said, simply.

Lily was about to retort, when she heard her name—her real name. Sheridan was walking towards them, quite expressionless.

"Oh no!" Lily moaned.

"What is it?" Lupin asked.

"With everything that happened last night, I forgot that we had agreed to meet," Lily gasped, "I completely stood him up."

"It's alright," Lupin said, "I'm sure he'll understand."

Sure enough, Sheridan swept her up into a hug, murmuring, "I missed you, last night."

"Yes, I'm sorry," Lily pressed, "I was finishing up my homework."

Sheridan glanced down at the pile of parchment on the table, but did not allude to it. Instead, he merely said, "Have you any idea where Hagrid is?"

"No, why would I?" Lily asked, bewildered. Behind her, James gave a loud cough.

"I spotted the five of you leaving his hut, this morning," Sheridan admitted, looking rather cross.

"What's it to you?" James spoke up.

Sheridan raised an eyebrow, "I was merely wondering why you would make my girlfriend lie, on your behalf?"

"You got us," Sirius threw up his hands, "We drank the night away. Things got a little fuzzy after midnight, but I swear nothing happened. Well, not unless you count…"

"Sirius," Lupin cut in, sharply, "You know those jokes that you think are funny, but you take them way too far? This is one of those."

"Ah," Sirius said, sadly, "Very well, then."

"Sheridan, this is my fault," Lupin admitted, rising.

"No it isn't," James, Sirius, Peter, and Lily all chorused. By now, everyone, save Frank and Alice, was standing.

"It is," Lupin said, "Lily was tending to a personal issue of mine."

"What's wrong?" Sheridan asked.

"It's personal," Lupin said, quietly.

Sheridan opened his mouth, but James angrily cut in, "Bloody hell, mate! Do you have to dictate every second of Lily's life? She's allowed to have one night, to herself."

"Excuse me?" Lily spoke up, "I am right here!"

"Trust me," Peter suddenly murmured, "You don't want to get in between this."

"This argument is about me," Lily cried.

"Which is precisely why you don't want to get in between it," Peter pointed out. Lily blinked, but realized that he had a point.

"I don't have a problem with her being by herself," Sheridan took a step forward and said, "I have a problem with her being with you, Potter."

By now, their voices were ringing through the library. Lily was well aware that everyone else was staring; again save for Frank and Alice. In fact, the two were making a point to stare at their books.

"Alright," Lupin said, tensely, "Let's end this, before it begins."

"It's already begun, mate," Sirius pointed out.

"You're a bloody hypocrite," James cried, "She'd do well without you."

By now, he was an inch away from Sheridan's face. Sheridan reeled back, giving him a hard push. Caught off guard, James stumbled backwards, knocking into Lupin. In turn, Lupin fell backwards, over a chair, slamming his head into the ground with a horrible crunch.

Several things happened at once.

"Oh no," Alice gasped, as she and Frank leapt up and raced over.

"Remus?" Lily cried, shocked and worried.

"M'alright," Lupin murmured, accepting the help up, "S'alright."

His reassurance was drowned out by roars from James and Sirius, as both leapt onto Sheridan and pinned him to the ground.

"No!" Lily cried, as punches and kicks were thrown, "Stop!"

By now, a good-sized crowd had formed around them. There was much confusion and chaos, and Lily didn't know what to attend to, first.

"What's going on?"

"Remus, you're bleeding!"

Marlene McKinnon and Mary MacDonald had arrived, the latter looking extremely worried as Lupin clamped a hand to the cut on his head.

"Someone get Madam Pomfrey."

"Where's Madam Pince?"

"Get Professor McGonagall."

"Potter, Black, you need to stop!" Lily cried, "Please, stop! James!"

They either didn't hear her, or didn't care. Sheridan was not going down without a fight, however. He returned the punches, smashing James' glasses and ripping out bits of Sirius' hair.

"Stop!" Frank roared, trying to break it up, "Come on, mates!"

Lily finally grabbed her wand, crying, "Petrificus Tortalus!"

The spell hit Sheridan in his chest, and he grew rigid.

"Get up," Lily ordered, pointing her wand at the two Marauders, "Now!"

They hastily complied, but it wasn't long before Sirius gave another lunge towards Sheridan.

"Sirius, no!" Lily cried, coming in between them and Sheridan, "You have to trust me."

Sirius frowned, evidently debating this. Eventually, he straightened up.

For several tense seconds, the entire room was still. The stillness was only broken by Professor McGonagall, who raced into the library, looking livid.

Immediately, the crowd dispersed. Only Frank, Alice, Marlene, and Mary stayed behind with her, the Marauders, and of course Sheridan, who really didn't have a choice in the matter.

"What happened?" Professor McGonagall roared.

Lily ducked her head, her conscience at war. She wasn't quite sure what was right or wrong, anymore. Blimey, who the hell knew?

Thus, Lily found herself tearing up, her breathing heavy and shallow.

"P…Professor," she spluttered, "Sheridan…"

"Calm down, Miss Evans," Professor McGonagall said, startled and agitated, "Potter, Black, you come with me."

Her voice held danger, and even James and Sirius winced.

"No," Lily cried, tearfully, "It's not their fault."

"Lily, are you alright?" Marlene asked, as Alice put a concerned hand on her shoulder. Mary also looked concerned, but she was still distracted by Lupin's wound.

"No, I'm not!" Lily burst out, "We were just sitting here, finishing up our homework…and…I know that they usually do something provoking, but they didn't! I… swear, Professor. Sheridan just came over and pushed Remus. And after what happened last night…"

"What happened last night?" Mary asked.

Lily's answer was drowned out by her own sob.

"Lily, it's alright," Lupin said, awkwardly, "I'm fine."

Indeed, he and Sirius were gauchely standing, as though not knowing whether to comfort Lily or to let her be. James was staring at her, evidently quite confused.

"You didn't do anything wrong!" Lily cried, "None of you did. You saw them, Professor. They were standing all the way over there, when you came in."

"Yet Mister McLerry is covered with bruises and scratches," Professor McGonagall said, auspiciously.

"I know," Lily said, miserably, "They…they were trying to pull him off of Lupin, but he kept on swinging at them...it was all in self-defense, Professor…I…I finally had to use the body-binding spell."

"You hexed your own boyfriend?" Professor McGonagall asked.

Lily had not thought of this. She broke off, before thoughtfully saying, "I suppose I did."

"You're accusing your own boyfriend?" Professor McGonagall cleared up.

"I suppose I am," Lily replied, quietly.

She wiped her eyes, whispering, "Please, Professor. D…don't punish James and Sirius. They were only trying to protect Remus."

By now, James' face was unreadable. He looked crossed between confused and amused.

"Very well," Professor McGonagall finally said. She bent down, tapping her wand. Sheridan awoke with a gasp.

"Mister McLerry, you shall come with me," Professor McGonagall snapped, "This instant!"

"Wha…I…" Sheridan cried, "I did nothing! Tell her, Lily."

Yet, Lily merely turned, burying her face into her hands.

Professor McGonagall was practically shaking with anger, "Now, Mister McLerry! As for you, Remus, you ought to go straight to the Hospital Wing to have that wound checked. You ought to come to, Miss Evans. A bit of over exhaustion mixed with stress, I believe."

"Yes, Professor," Lily squeaked, "I'm…sorry. I didn't mean to…to…"

"It's alright," Professor McGonagall said, softly, "The Hospital Wing, if you please."

"Right away, Professor," Lily nodded.

Yet, even after Professor McGonagall exited, Lily did not attempt to follow her. Instead she straightened up, hating herself more and more as every second passed.

She glanced at James, who grinned before snapping, "That was bloody awful!"

Immediately, the tension relaxed.

"You were bluffing?" Alice gasped.

Sirius laughed, "I knew it!"

" 'Oh Professor,' " James mimicked, in a high-pitched voice, " ' Whatever am I going to do? I'm just a dame in distress. ' "

"But why?" Lupin whispered, "Why lie, for us?"

"It wasn't a total lie," Lily remarked, "Sheridan was definitely out of line."

"So, that's why you wanted us to stand up," James said, looking very impressed, "You wanted it to appear as though we did nothing wrong. You were looking out for us!"

"You didn't do anything wrong," Lily pointed out.

James was quiet for a moment, looking very thoughtful. At long last, he said, "What we did wasn't right, either."

"It was enough," Lily replied.

"It was enough for what?" Marlene asked, "What is going on?"

"Nothing," Lily sighed, "Nothing at all."

() () () () ()

Lily should've fallen asleep the moment her head hit the pillow. Instead, she found herself lying awake. Insomnia was such a lovely thing.

Lily finally gave an indignant growl and leapt up. She found herself aimlessly wandering through the castle. As a last resort, she slipped outside. She thought about going to the overhang, but settled with the bank of the lake. She sat down, suddenly feeling more exhausted than ever.

"All right then, Evans?"

Lily gave a small scream, nearly falling into the murky water. Instead, she whirled around, coming face to face with a smirking James Potter. He was donning a burgundy bathrobe and a look that made Lily feel miniscule.

"Potter, what are you doing here?" Lily hissed, recomposing herself.

"Alice knocked on our dormitory door, moments ago," James said, cheerfully, "She was terribly distraught because you had decided to take a walk."

Lily's respiratory system suddenly became treacherous, causing her to let out an agitated sigh. She turned back to face the lake, "I can't even go for a walk without being questioned."

"Merlin, no," James said, feigning surprise, "You might break a nail, or stub a toe. The giant squid might drag you under. We're only looking out for you."

"Very funny," Lily said, shortly.

James's grin deepened, and he ruffled a hand through his hair. Lily decided at this point that the best action was to simply ignore him. She gazed up at the moon, but shivered as she remembered what had occurred…Blimey, had it only been twenty-four hours ago?

"By the way," James said, evenly, "I suppose that I should thank you, for what happened earlier in the library."

"I suppose that I should thank you for saving me, last night," Lily replied, rather sadly, "It was you, wasn't it? When Remus came out of the bushes."

"I was saving Remus, just as much as I was saving you," James pointed out, "So, it isn't a fair trade off." He suddenly chuckled and said, "You lied to Professor McGonagall and jinxed your boyfriend, all within five minutes. You're coming along nicely."

Lily sighed, "I suppose that I should go talk to Sheridan."

To her surprise, James looked confused, "Whatever for?"

"I owe it to him," Lily said.

"No," James said, so loudly that Lily jumped. He had a peculiar expression, as he walked towards her. He gently grabbed her shoulder, until green eyes met hazel.

"You don't owe him anything," James said, quietly, "You don't owe anyone anything. Not me, nor Sheridan, nor Severus, Petunia, Sirius, Remus, Peter, McGonagall, or anyone else in this world."

Lily was rendered speechless. Feeling like a complete idiot, she managed to nod.

"Listen to me," James said, "You have spent your entire life being what everyone else wants you to be. What do you want to be, Evans?"

"You're asking me this now?" Lily whispered, agitated, "You're asking me the meaning of life on the bank of the Black Lake at three o'clock in the morning?"

"No, of course not," James chuckled, "I don't expect you to know the meaning of life. I just want you to know that your life has meaning."

Lily snapped, "What is with you lately?"

Her yells flowed across the lake, as she shook with anger, "You're James Potter. You're an arrogant, petty, bastard. You're not supposed to be wise and caring."

"You want me to act like a berk?" James chuckled.

"I want you to act like yourself," Lily pressed.

"How do you know that this isn't me?" James pondered.

"I hope that I'm not interrupting anything."

Lily and James looked up, and saw that they were not alone. Sheridan was striding towards them, looking terribly unhappy.

"Sheridan," Lily exclaimed, her face pink, "I…was just coming to see you."

Yet, this appeared to be the only thing that she could say. She faltered, not knowing what to do.

Next to her, James resisted rolling his eyes and exasperatedly said, "She wanted to make sure that you were still alive. Sirius can throw out some nasty body-binding spells."

"_Now_ we're even," he added, in a whisper that Lily could barely hear.

She blinked, both surprised and touched. Sheridan scoffed, "I should've known that Black would bring a wand to a fistfight."

"Yep, he's a right arse," James said, cheerfully.

"No he's not," Lily sighed, "Well, he is, but that's beside the point. Sheridan, I was the one who hexed you."

Sheridan was shocked.

Lily continued, her voice quivering, "Remus was bleeding, you three were out of control, and the situation was getting out of hand. I couldn't let you hurt my friends, Sheridan."

"They are not your friends," Sheridan laughed, "Lily, be reasonable."

"You know what," Lily said, quietly, "For the first time in my life, I think I am being reasonable."

Both James and Sheridan were taken aback by this. James tilted his head, a smile tugging at his mouth. Lily ignored him, turning to Sheridan, "I really like you, Sheridan. I just have some things that I need to sort out."

"I see," Sheridan said, pursing his lips, "I suppose Potter's going to help you sort them out?"

"Of course not," Lily said, sharply. She felt a small pang of guilt, but was surprised when James's smile only deepened. In fact, he seemed to be donning the same smile that Professor McGonagall usually gave her, whenever she excelled at an exam. He was proud, if not happy.

"I'm sorry, Sheridan," Lily said, sincerely, "I truly thought that I loved you. In a way, I still think that I do. But, I do not deserve you."

Sheridan seemed dumbfounded, "I cannot believe this. You're leaving me…to be friends with a petty bastard, an unhinged arse, a scrawny nerd, and an overweight tot?"

Lily held her head high as she said, "To right I am."

"Can't we just talk about this?" Sheridan pleaded.

"There's nothing to talk about," Lily responded, "Even if there was, you wouldn't listen."

"But…"

"Just leave, Sheridan!" Lily ordered, "Please!"

He spluttered unintelligently, before finally complying.

There was quite a long pause, before James said, "Huh. Am I the bastard or the arse?"

He turned, realizing that his joke wasn't helping. He sighed, solemnly saying, "Are you okay?"

"I'll be alright," Lily said, sadly.

James smiled, "I know you will."


	8. Chapter 8

12/02/12

Chapter Eight

() () () () ()

_I hate you because I love you. I hate you because even after all the stuff you have put me through I still would die just to hear you say my name. I hate you because I can't move on. I hate you because you're still my entire world. _

~ Sierras Mufford

() () () () ()

'_Cause even the stars, they burn_

_Some even fall to the earth_

_We've got a lot to learn_

_But God knows we're worth it_

() () () () ()

The world doesn't stop turning, just for anyone. Lily wasn't about to let the breakup control her life. Much to everyone's surprise, she got up the next day and was still, remarkably, alive. It was hard. Blimey, it was torturous. Yet, it was nothing that Lily couldn't handle.

She found herself spending more time with the Marauders, even if it was just a simple Wizard's Chess game, every now and then. She and James were getting long well; at least, they resisted killing each other during their rounds. The only difficult part was avoiding Sheridan.

He finally cornered her in the corridor, begging for forgiveness.

"Lily, I understand," Sheridan pleaded, practically on his knees, "I understand exactly where you are coming from. I was a fool. If I could do it again…"

"You'd do the same thing," Lily said, quietly.

"That's not true," Sheridan whispered, "I love you, Lily."

Lily felt something catch in her throat. She looked away, unable to speak. She only looked back up, when she heard pounding footfalls.

"Lily!" Peter gasped, racing around the corner, "You have to come, quickly!"

Lily hesitated, for only a brief second, before following him.

"Not so fast," she ordered, as they raced through the corridors, "What is it?"

Only when they were two floors below, did Peter finally stop. He glanced around, before promptly saying, "There. That got rid of him."

Lily felt her jaw drop, and only managed a confused stutter.

Peter shrugged, "I saw the two of you on the Marauders Map. I figured that you would've wanted to get away from him."

"You didn't know that," Lily said, feeling her temper blaze for an unknown reason, "We were having a decent conversation."

"Clearly," Peter said, sardonically. He pulled a misplaced handkerchief from his bag. Despite the fact that her eyes were stinging, Lily did not accept it.

Instead she said, "No offence, but you do not know me."

She walked away, but wasn't quick enough. For Peter sadly mumbled, "I know you."

Lily spun around, "Earlier this term, I asked you to describe me. You couldn't even do that! The fact is: Sheridan was sincerely apologizing!"

She broke off, before getting an idea, "Here, give me the map. Maybe I can still catch up to him."

"No," Peter said, quietly.

Lily threw her hands into the air, exasperatedly, "Stop acting like such an idiot!"

Something flashed across Peter's face. His lip trembled, slightly, and he bowed his head.

"Peter," Lily said, immediately crestfallen, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean…"

"S'alright," Peter said, though he still refused to look up, "For the record, earlier this term, I told you that you were complicated. I'm certainly sorry if that didn't meet your word limit, but I stand by it."

With that, he grabbed his bag and stomped away.

Lily sighed, utterly frustrated. She thought about seeing if Sheridan was waiting for her, but she realized that Peter had done her a blessing. Her guilt weighing her down, she started after him. He was long gone, having no doubt used one of the secret passageways.

"Damn it," she growled.

"You've always had a way with words, Red."

Lily resisted a groan. Sirius was striding towards her, smirking with that all-knowing smile, "Blimey, am I glad to see you."

Lily couldn't imagine why, and decided that it was simply best to not question Sirius. Instead, she merely asked, "Have you seen Peter?"

When Sirius shook his head, Lily swore again.

"Something wrong?" Sirius asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Everything's cheery," Lily replied, through gritted teeth, "Unless you count the fact that I just snapped at Peter, even though he was trying to help me. Or if you count the fact that I only needed help because Sheridan was begging me to take him back. I've never seen him look so…"

She broke off, unable to find the right word.

"Pathetic?" Sirius offered.

"Heartbroken," Lily burst out, "I don't know what to do! I feel like, no matter what I do, I'm going to end up hurting someone."

She broke off, suddenly realizing that Sirius was casually, yet firmly, pressing a hand against his stomach, "You're bleeding!"

"It's nothing," Sirius said, nonchalantly, "You were saying?"

"What happened to you?" Lily demanded, thoroughly distracted.

Sirius grinned, all while pressing down on a deep gash on his stomach, "Let's just say a certain chap decided to nick a Venomous Tentacula from the greenhouses. Let's also say that this handsome chap failed."

Lily closed her eyes, taking a few deep breaths to keep from exploding.

"Well, get to the Hospital Wing," she demanded.

"No bloody way," Sirius said, "No pun intended, mind you. Madam Pomfrey's alright, but even she asks the occasional question."

Through gritted teeth, Lily reluctantly said, "Fine. Then, come back with me to the Common Room. I have some healing supplies, in the dormitory."

Sirius hesitated, before complying. Lily couldn't help but to look around, as they entered the Common Room.

"He's not here," Sirius said, lightly.

"Who isn't?"

"James. He's out on the Quidditch pitch. We've got our match against Ravenclaw, this weekend."

"Why would I care where Potter was?" Lily asked, much too quickly.

Sirius merely smirked.

"Oh hush," Lily said, her temper flaring, "Now, let me see that wound."

She raced up to the dormitory, collecting the necessary ingredients and her cauldron. Upon returning, she brought it to a boil over the fireplace, adding the constituents. Within a quarter of an hour, the potion was made.

"Take your shirt off," she noted, absentmindedly. When Sirius doubled over with laughter, Lily flushed, "You know what I meant."

"I always knew that you couldn't resist me," Sirius winked.

Lily's eyes flashed, "Alright, Black, we have two options. Either you can shut it and allow me to heal you, so that you don't bleed out. Or, I can stand here and gleefully let you lose enough blood, until you lose consciousness, giving Gryffindor house a much-needed night of silence."

"Testy," Sirius sighed, heavily, but removed his shirt.

Lily flinched at the wound, ladling the potion into a vial and handing it to him.

Sirius gagged, "That potion looks revolting."

"You're not going to drink it!" Lily said, exasperated. She pulled out a small rag and dabbed it into the potion, which was now as thick as paste.

"But it smells revolting," Sirius pouted.

"Stop acting like an immature tot," Lily ordered. She held her breath, as she slathered it across the deep cut. Within moments, the wound had scabbed. After a while, it was nothing more than a thin scar.

Sirius grinned, leaning back on the couch, "I love you, Evans."

The ingredients flew from Lily's arms, shattering on the ground.

Much to Sirius' surprise, she found herself shrieking, "What did you say?"

"Relax," Sirius soothed, wide-eyed, "It was a joke, Lily."

"Love isn't a joke," Lily hissed.

Realizing what she had just said, she reeled around, looking out the window and at nothing at all.

She felt Sirius come up behind her, but she didn't really care at this point. She felt her eyes prickle, and silently swore. Finally, she whispered, "You shouldn't tell someone that you love them, unless you sincerely mean it."

"I'm sorry," Sirius stammered, truly shocked. After a tense moment, he muttered, "I can assure you that I don't love you. No offence, you're just not my type."

Lily sighed, rolling her eyes, "Yes, obviously I know that you don't. Believe me, the feelings are completely mutual. Still, it's the principle of the matter."

Sirius was quiet for a moment, before suddenly snapping his fingers, "Sherry told you that he loved you, didn't he?"

Lily felt her cheeks flamed, "What's that have to do with anything?"

"It's got to do with everything," Sirius corrected, smiling.

"Shut it," Lily snapped.

"As you wish," Sirius bowed, "I suggest you forget all about your feelings for Ravenclaw boys, though. Seeing as how we're about to crush them, on Saturday. You're coming, right?"

"I don't know," Lily said, exasperated, "I'm not that fond of Quidditch."

Sirius looked aghast, "Listen Red, there are six things that can cheer someone up: Birds, Butterbeer, Candy, Dungbombs, Hexes, and Quidditch. Now, seeing as how you're a dame, the bird aspect doesn't quite apply to you. Although, Sheridan was rather close…"

Lily felt her eyes flash and Sirius quickly continued, "Either way, I can assure you that coming to the match will make you feel better."

Lily grudgingly agreed, before retreating back to her dormitory. Why should she care if Sheridan professed his love? After all, she didn't love him back. It was over . . .

() () () () ()

So, it was with much disinclination that Lily made her way to the Quidditch Pitch, on Saturday morning. Alice and Frank joined her, eager to see the match. Lily couldn't remember the last time that she had actually been to a Quidditch then grew quiet, as it hit her. She used to join Snape at the matches, reluctantly listening as he criticized James' every move.

The one half of the bleachers was nothing less than a sea of red and gold. Sirius, Lupin, and Peter were already flushed with adrenaline. Peter had an armful of candy, which was already partially smeared across his face. He offered Lily, Alice, and Frank several pieces, and shuffled to the side, so that the three could join them.

"Oi, what are you doing here, _Ravenclaw_?" Sirius cried, suspiciously leering at Frank.

"Relax, mate," Frank chuckled, "I'm on your side. Bagman's a bloody idiot."

"Well said," Sirius said, raising a tankard of butterbeer.

"You can't drink that out here," Lily said, automatically.

"It's barely alcoholic," Sirius pointed out, "Are you going to turn me in?"

"Of course not," Lily sighed.

Next to Sirius, Marlene McKinnon raised her eyebrows, "Several months ago, Lily would've done anything to turn you in. She would've stopped the match, to do so."

Sirius sniggered, and the two shared a quick snog.

Lily didn't have an answer to this, for she realized that Marlene was right. She sat in between Sirius and Lupin, but immediately realized that it was a rather poor judgment on her part. Within minutes of the game starting, both teenagers were leaping up and shouting. Lily covered her ears, before she realized that Sirius was bent down, talking to her.

"What'd I tell you?" Sirius winked, "Quidditch, Birds, Butterbeer, Candy…Hang on!"

Without further ado, he pulled out a large Dungbomb and threw it at an unsuspecting first year. Lily rolled her eyes, before stopping him from hexing the poor boy.

"You've made your point," she hissed, "Only I'm not hungry or thirsty. Nor do I care about throwing Dungbombs or hexing innocent students. And in case you haven't noticed, I can't exactly find pleasure with a bird."

Sirius looked very thoughtful at this. He looked at Lupin for advice, and Lily was mortified to find out that the latter had been listening in. Lupin smiled, saying, "You would never throw a Dungbomb or hex anyone. So, that is definitely out of the question. You're at a Quidditch match. That's something, isn't it? The Butterbeer and candy is available, if you want it. And I suppose the fact that you're actually socially interacting with friends can balance out the need for a bird or twat."

Lily quieted, realizing that he was quite right. Her thoughtful moment was drowned out by Sirius, who screamed with joy as Gryffindor scored.

"Yes," Lily whispered.

"Yes," Sirius mimicked her, "Come on, Red! Stand up and get into the game!"

He pulled her to her feet. Lily sighed, debating on whether or not she should just leave. Her eye was drawn to James, who was expertly flying. He was swerving in and out of the other players, the Quaffle in his hand. Lily couldn't help but to gasp, as a Ravenclaw beater charged towards him. James waited until he was mere inches away, before doing a flip in midair, faking left, and throwing the Quaffle through the left goalpost.

"YES!" Lily triumphantly shouted. Within minutes, Lily found herself joining in the chaos. It was an amazing surge of adrenaline. Soon, she couldn't think about anything else. She accepted several Bertie Botts from Peter, and drowned them with a swig of Butterbeer. She pumped her fist, watching intently as James scored another goal.

"Bagman's after the Snitch," Frank suddenly cried, "Blimey, I can't believe it!"

"Yeah, but Watson is right after him," Sirius said, hungrily.

"Bagman's broom is faster," Mary gasped. Lily jumped, having not realized that she had joined them. She was clinging to Lupin's arm, animatedly.

The latter grinned, "Yeah, but Watson is smarter!"

"Come on!" Lily cried, "COME ON!"

She stood on the edge of her seat, urging the Seeker to go faster. Her concentration was broken by a yell. James had toppled off of his broom! He was now hanging on, by mere fingers. He struggled, looking terrified.

"No!" Lily gasped, her heart crashing to her stomach.

"Yes!" Sirius and Lupin high-fived.

"Wha—?" Lily turned back around, and suddenly understood. Having heard James' scream, Bagman turned. In a flash, Watson sped up and closed his hand around the Snitch.

The noise was utterly deafening. The stands vibrated with the thunderous roars of victory.

"WE WON, LILY! WE WON!"

Sirius embraced her, practically leaping up and down. Peter, meanwhile, had squealed with delight, toppling into the seats behind him. Lupin's normally pale face was flushed with excitement and adrenaline, as he pumped his fist. Marlene was crying with delight. Mary clapped until her hands were raw. Frank and Alice passionately kissed.

All of a sudden, James was there. He glided into the stands, without a single care in the world. Lily stepped forward, but a mob of students swarmed in between them. People were screaming and shouting. It was utter chaos. It was brilliant. It was just what Lily needed.

Eventually, the crowd thinned away. James broke through, grinning triumphantly.

"NICE ONE, MATE!" Sirius thumped James on the back, having lost the ability to lower the volume of his voice.

"Well done!" Lupin boomed, "Brilliant!"

"Watson was the one who caught the Snitch," James pointed out, rather modestly.

"Yes, but your goals were amazing," Lily congratulated, before realizing that she was, in fact, gushing.

"Thanks!" James said, looking very pleased.

"Party!" Peter suggested, excitedly.

"Not yet," Sirius grinned, "I didn't come out here, to just sit on the ground!"

He pulled out his wand. Lily ducked, just in time to avoid eight broomsticks. Sirius passed them out respectively to Peter, Lupin, Frank, Alice, Marlene, Mary, and…

"Oh, no thank you," Lily said, declining a broom, "I don't fly."

"Come on, Lily," Alice laughed, mounting her broom and taking off. Frank joined her, the two brooms pressed together. Marlene and Sirius took off, after them. Lupin and Mary followed, both flushing. Peter spiraled around them, innocently laughing.

"Come on," James said, bracingly.

"I don't fly," Lily repeated.

"Yeah, you do," James laughed, "Listen, Lily, you've been a perfectionist, your entire life. Now, don't look at me like that. You know it's true. But, you're slowly breaking out of that normal, cute, routine. And what better way to speed up the process, by coming out of your comfort zone? So, take the bloody broomstick!"

"No," Lily said, firmly.

"Alright," James said, mischievously.

Lily backed away, unwaveringly. She kept her eyes firmly on James, and was therefore unable to see Sirius dive towards her. He picked her up in a swoop, flying high into the sky.

"Black, put me down!" Lily shrieked, pounding his chest.

"Poor choice of words," Sirius admitted, letting her slip away.

Lupin easily caught her, looking very apologetic, "I'm sorry, Lily."

He tilted his broom, until she could no longer hold on. She gave him several, well-choiced, words before falling off.

It was James who finally caught her. Then again, wasn't it James who always caught her, when she fell? He gently pulled her behind him. She yelled out, her heart thundering. Surely, she was going to die. She hated him. She hated Sirius. She hated the bloody Marauders. She hated the bloody world.

James laughed, completely unfazed by the fact that she was nearing a panic attack, "Hold on, Evans."

"Potter, I am going to kill you," Lily promised. She thrust her hand into her pocket, before realizing that her wand was missing. Peter flew by, smirking as he twirled it.

"POTTER!" Lily screeched.

"There's that screeching," James smiled, "There's only one way down, you know."

Lily felt her stomach leap into her throat. They were flying higher and higher.

"Go back," she ordered, "Go back!"

"Stop being a backseat driver," James taunted.

She threw her arms around his stomach, closing her eyes. She was shaking, and was trying not to profusely vomit. His Quidditch robes were silky, and she tightened her grip.

"Lily," James said, softly, "Open your eyes."

She shook her head, "I'd rather not, thank you."

"Do you trust me?" James asked.

"You practically kidnapped me, forced me to fly against my will, somehow managed to get our friends involved, and you expect me to trust you?" Lily hissed.

"Do you?" James asked, simply.

Against her better judgment, Lily opened her eyes. She gave a startled groan, tightening her grip as she spotted the ground below.

"Don't look at the ground," James scolded, "Why would you even want to look at the ground, anyway? You know what's on the ground. You were just there. That's where you've always been. Look up. Look ahead."

Lily complied and gasped, but not out of fear.

The sun was nearly set. The sky was a mixture of brilliant pinks, reds, yellows, and oranges. They were drifting towards Hogwarts, which seemed to be basking in the sunset. She loosened her grip on James. She was flying! She was gliding! She was soaring!

"Hold on," James whispered. Lily tightened her grip, just in time. James steeply dove, aiming straight towards the ground. Lily screamed, but it was cut short as James pulled up. She couldn't help but to laugh. She felt so free!

James soared towards the lake, skimming the glossy surface so that water sprayed.

"Alright?" James asked, anxiously.

"I'm fine," she whispered.

She was.

Eventually, the sun disappeared beneath the mountains. The rich oranges, reds, and yellows faded away to purples and blues. Stars surfaced, glistening in her eyes. The others flew around them, blissfully laughing.

Lily stared up at them, and was amazed to find that a few of them started to fall towards the earth.

"Snow!" Sirius roared, from somewhere to her left.

The snowflakes settled in their hair and melted at the touch.

Lily smiled, realizing that it was perfect. She closed her eyes, once more.

"I love flying," she whispered.

She suddenly realized that she was drawing closer to James . . .

He was merely inches away . . .

Her lips brushed against his. It was short. It was a lifetime. It was blunt. It was brilliant. It was illicit. It was long coming. It was . . . wet.

For Lily cried out, horrified at what she had just done. She leapt backwards, which was bad luck on a broomstick. She toppled off, and though James tried to catch her, she found herself tumbling through the air, crashing into the icy waters, below.

She resurfaced, coughing and spluttering. For a second, James was left hovering in midair, looking crossed between shocked and amused.

The others landed, as Lily climbed up the bank. She was sopping wet and shivering. The excitement and adrenaline was long gone, now replaced by embarrassment and mortification.

The others had not seen what happened, which was something.

"What happened?" Alice asked, surprised.

James landed, grinning from ear to ear, "Red broke out of her comfort zone."


	9. Chapter 9

Author's Note: Quick chapter, tonight!

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"Life is really simple, but we insist on making it complicated."

― Confucius

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_I don't want to be someone, who walks away so easily._

_I'm here to stay and make the difference that I can make._

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Chapter Nine

Oh, Merlin!

She had kissed him!

Lily paced the dormitory, several days later. She was still in shock.

She had kissed James bloody Potter!

She decided that the most rational thing to do was to pack and leave Hogwarts. She might've done just that, had Alice not stopped her, by entering the dormitory.

"What are you doing?" Alice pressed.

"Nothing," Lily sighed, realizing that she was acting ridiculous.

"You've been cooped up, for days," Alice continued, "Are you ill?"

"No," Lily insisted, "I'm fine."

She realized that she was acting ridiculous. After all, she couldn't avoid him, forever.

Making up her mind, she went down to the Common Room. James was poking the hearth, looking cheerful, "Morning, Evans. You're looking lovely."

Lily suddenly realized that she was still in her pajamas. She flushed, but merely said, "Shut it. I need to talk to you."

"How can we talk, if I shut it?" James pointed out.

"Listen to me," Lily said, seriously, "That kiss meant nothing."

"Alright."

"I mean it."

"I know."

"We should probably just forget about it."

"Agreed."

"It was a mistake."

"Quite."

"There's no reason to tell anyone."

"Right."

"It was a simple peck."

"Indeed."

"Damn it, Potter," Lily growled. Her hand tightened around her wand, "I'm serious."

"I feel as though we missed a pun, there," James grinned.

Fed up and frustrated, Lily slashed her wand. A light hex hit James in the stomach. For a moment he looked stunned. Then, he merely grinned.

"I'm sorry," Lily said, hastily, "I just…"

James wasn't listening. He was too busy trying to count, "Let's see. You went to a Quidditch game. Sirius tells me that you're substituting a bird for friends, so that works. You ate a heap of candy and drowned that with Butterbeer. You just hexed me. The only thing you're missing is a Dungbomb."

He pulled one out of his bag, winked, and handed it to her.

"Use it well," he advised, and left, as though their conversation had never occurred.

Use it well.

Lily Evans had never pulled a prank, in her life. Suddenly, she wanted to. The Marauders did it all the time—why shouldn't she? But, who would she pull it on? She didn't want to hurt an innocent student.

She suddenly realized exactly who she should prank.

She showered and changed, all while coming between a battle of her id and superego.

Of course, it was wrong. It was asinine. It was childish.

Still, she found herself walking towards the Ravenclaw Common Room.

She took a deep breath, feeling horribly guilty. She studied the pranking device and formed a plan. She would wait outside the entrance to the Ravenclaw Common Room, until Sheridan came out. She would then set the Dungbomb off and run away.

Yes, that's exactly what she would do.

And Lily might've actually done it.

Had James not stopped her.

He raced up the corridor, with Lupin at his heels.

"Lily, wait," Lupin demanded, "Don't do this."

"You lot do this, every day," Lily pointed out.

"Not this way," James said, heavily.

Lily went to object, when the portrait swung open. Sheridan scrambled through, before stopping at the sight of them.

"Lily, what are you doing here?" he asked, pleasantly surprised.

"I…" Lily said, "I just…"

James stepped around her, quietly saying, "We're here for Frank. We've got a Heads' meeting."

It was then that Lily remembered that she was, in fact, a Head Girl. Furthermore, James and Lupin were the Head Boy and Prefect! She couldn't jeopardize that, just for a prank.

"Right," Sheridan said, looking disappointed, "I'll get him."

"Please do," James said, cheerfully.

Lily realized that she was still holding the Dungbomb, looking like an idiot. She quickly pocketed it.

She went to apologize to James and Lupin, but they avoided her gaze. They stood in silence, until Frank reappeared.

"We don't have a meeting," he pointed out.

James hushed him, before Sheridan could say anything. He pulled Frank into the corridor, shutting the door in Sheridan's face.

"Walk," James instructed.

Frank looked skeptical, but he merely nodded. The three walked in unison, with Lily struggling to keep up. Eventually, Sirius and Peter fell into step, besides them. The Marauders and Frank marched down the corridor, quietly and mysteriously. Before Lily could say anything, an explosion ripped through the corridor, followed by a horrid stench.

"Run," James whispered.

And they did.

They raced away, as shouts echoed around them. They didn't stop, until they were three floors below, gasping for breath.

Lily glanced at James, demanding an answer.

"It's quite simple," James said, cheerfully, "We knew that you were going to try and pull off a rather pathetic prank. One bloody Dungbomb is not enough. We would never be caught doing something that simple. So, Wormtail and Padfoot snuck into the Ravenclaw Common Room, beneath the Invisibility Cloak. They planted approximately four dozen Dungbombs in the dormitory, which was ignited when Sheridan set off a tripwire. That left Moony and I to stop you from pulling off your pathetic prank, all while getting Frank out of there."

"That's…that's brilliant," Lily said.

"We know," the Marauders chorused.

"Thanks for rescuing me," Frank said, bracingly, "Though, you could've done something about my possessions. They're going to smell rancid."

"We're not ones for saving material possessions," James shrugged.

"Right," Frank said, slowly, "You mean, like my bed, clothes, and homework?"

"Yeah, those," James said, waving his hand, "Trivial things, really."

"Oughtn't we go to class?" Peter suggested.

"Yes, we ought to," Lily agreed. Upon seeing James and Sirius' disgusted looks, she added, "It will provide a worthy alibi."

"Nice thinking," Sirius said, nodding.

They clambered into the Defence Against the Dark Arts classroom, right before Professor Anderson tapped on the chalkboard. A series of notes spread across the surface, causing everyone to groan.

"Right," Professor Armstrong said, "Today, we shall be conjuring Patronuses."

The class quieted as this, perking up their ears. Only the Marauders seemed unfazed, having learned this technique years ago.

"Let's see, how about our Heads give us a demonstration?" Professor Armstrong suggested, "Potter and Evans, if you don't mind coming up front?"

Lily sighed. Of course, it would have to be the two of them.

Sirius leaned over and whispered something to Lupin. The latter looked mildly interested, but eventually shook his head.

"One galleon," Sirius dared.

"You're on," Lupin whispered.

Lily was about to ask what they were talking about, but she decided that it was best not to ask. Instead, she reluctantly made her way to the front of the classroom, joining a smirking James.

"Watch and learn," James told the gawking students, "Expecto Patronum!"

Immediately a large stag burst out of his wand. It was silver and translucent, and utterly fitting. It glowed and pulsed as it pranced around the room.

"Well done, Potter!" Professor Anderson boomed, "Well done! Off you go, Evans."

Lily hesitated, before crying, "Expecto Patronum!"

A silver wisp shot out of her wand. Several people chuckled. She flushed, mortified.

"Not bad," James said, bracingly. He then turned to the class, seemingly taking over the lesson, "It's not enough to just say the spell, though. You have to think of something happy. Alright, Red?"

Lily nodded, her cheeks still flaming. She searched her mind, trying to think of a happy moment. As a last resort, she thought of when she had received her first Hogwarts letter. She had been ecstatic.

"Expecto Patronum," she repeated. This time, the silver mist seemed to form into a loose shape.

Then again, Petunia had refused to look in Lily's general direction for a week, after she had received the letter. Snape had been happy, of course. But, that hardly turned out to be a good thing.

The Patronus flickered and dissolved, making a rather rude noise, as it did so.

"I said something _happy_!" James said, slightly alarmed.

Lily closed her eyes, racking her brain. Then, the memory came. She was soaring on the broomstick, holding onto James. They were flying into the sunset, as the snowflakes lightly fell around them.

Lily raised her wand and roared, "Expecto Patronum!"

A large animal burst out of her wand. Lily gasped, her hands flying to her mouth, and a sea of murmurs spread across the classroom.

"Bloody hell," Sirius whispered, accepting a Galleon from a stunned Lupin.

The latter merely shook his head, "No way."

Peter craned his neck, trying to get a glimpse of the animal as it soared around the classroom.

Perhaps the most surprised was James, whose eyes had widened to the size of a Sickle. He and Lily stood, mouths agape, as they watched the doe prance around the classroom. Eventually, the doe caught up with the stag and they pranced together, doing a sort of dance, before fading away.

The silence was deafening. Lily wiped her eyes, which had become rather watery. She then returned to her desk, all while staring at the floor. James took his seat, a smile spreading across his face. He was utterly aware that Sirius was watching him, donning him that all-knowing smirk.

"What?" James challenged.

"Nothing," Sirius said, warmly, "Nothing at all."


	10. Chapter 10

Author's Note: Life is good. I managed to survive my finals, and even came out with a 4.0 GPA in my first semester of college! That has nothing to do with the story; I just wanted to share my achievement. As I repeat, life is good. My life. Not Lily's life. And her life is the one that you truly care about. A lot going on in this chapter! Don't get lost!

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"Our differences they do a lot to teach us how to use the tools we've got. Yeah, we've got a lot at stake…"

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Chapter Ten

News of the Patronus Incident spread like wildfire. By the end of the week, Lily could hardly walk down the corridor, without hearing whispers. Lily calmly ignored the gawking students. After all, they were blowing things out of proportion. There was a limited amount of animals in the world, as compared to the number of wizards and witches. It wasn't that absurd for two Patronuses to be similar. Still, she supposed that the matter was worth looking into. This way she could put a stop to the nonsense, using cold facts.

She had the perfect opportunity, when the rest of the school visited Hogsmeade, one blustery Saturday morning. Though she longed to see the cottages covered in snow, she had more important priorities. So, she bid her friends goodbye and headed to the library. It was practically empty, aside from a group of first years. She swept past them, giving them a superfluous look. She then stole away to the back wing of the library, summoning a stack of books that had anything to do with conjuring a Patronus.

Lily looked around, feeling rather mischievous. She lightly tapped her wand, turning the pages. She levitated pages and was even able to lift several words off of the page. They soared around her, and she couldn't help but to smile. It was nerdy, yes. But, it was also rather brilliant. She practically absorbed the books, or rather they absorbed her. For she didn't realize how much time she had spent studying, until a clock chimed overhead. The lights had flickered on—it was well into the evening!

"Bugger!" Lily hissed, leaping up.

She was just beginning to collect the books, when she saw it. The answer was right in front of her, all along. She grabbed the book, hungrily reading:

_Occasionally when a witch and a wizard are married, their Patronuses will match each other (most likely because the witch/wizard's happy thought will be that of their spouse)._

"That's preposterous," she hissed, to no one in particular. She gave the book a harsh rap with her wand. It promptly leapt up and flew through the air towards the shelf. Unfortunately, it seemed to stop in midair, as someone grunted, "Oi! Watch it!"

Lily put a hand to her mouth, to keep from crying out. Sirius appeared quite suddenly, grinning from ear to ear.

"Evening," Sirius said, nonchalantly.

Lily spluttered, before noticing what he was holding.

"Is that an Invisibility Cloak?" Lily asked.

"Yep," Sirius said, proudly.

"You have an Invisibility Cloak?"

"Don't be daft," Sirius chuckled, "It's not mine. It's James'."

"Potter has an Invisibility Cloak?" Lily whispered, outraged.

"Well, yeah," Sirius responded, looking surprised, "Didn't you know?"

"He's mentioned it before," Lily admitted, "I always thought that he was joking."

She suddenly felt rather revolted.

"All right?"

"Yeah," Lily said, quietly, "I just think that I'm going to lock the dormitory door, from now on."

Sirius threw his head back and laughed, "Don't worry, we gave up that attempt, long ago. The stairs still turn into a slide. Hogwarts is still a bit too smart for us. Now, the loo on the other hand…"

"Why are you here?" Lily burst out, "Why aren't you at Hogsmeade?"

"Didn't feel like mingling with the crowds," Sirius shrugged.

"Why hide in the library beneath an Invisibility Cloak?" Lily demanded.

"Madam Pince banned me from the library, ever since the incident with Sherry," Sirius explained, "Besides, how else could I read over your shoulder?"

Lily groaned, slamming her book closed. She then leapt up, and hastily walked way.

Her guilt overwhelmed her, and she turned back. Sirius hadn't budged, and was staring at a crack in the library floor.

Lily took a deep breath, "What is it?"

Sirius looked up, "What is what?"

"Something's obviously bothering you," Lily sighed, "You can tell me."

"It's Marlene," Sirius sighed, suddenly quite irritated, "I just don't understand her. I'm not one for relationships, Red. The longest bird I ever had lasted a week."

"Marlene's not a bird," Lily said, indignantly.

"That's the point," Sirius cried, "There's just something about Marlene that's different. I keep going back to her. I…Blimey, I'd take a hex for her."

"That's…sweet," Lily said, astonished that Sirius was capable of such feelings.

"Don't get all sentimental on me, Evans," Sirius snarled.

"Well, that's what love is," Lily said, smiling, "It's the feeling when you would take a hex for someone, because you couldn't live without them. I know that it goes against everything you believe in, but the person you love doesn't have to be the prettiest person in the school. The person you love is the one who cheers you up, no matter what the situation. She's the one that is always faithful, no matter what obstacles you have to overcome. Yes, it's true that she might irritate you. I'm not saying that she has to be perfect. She just has to be perfect for you."

Sirius tilted his head, his mouth twitching, "You just described James."

Lily blinked, "You're in love with James?"

Sirius smirked, "_You're_ in love with James!"

Lily's eyes widened and she felt the heat radiate from her face, "That's ridiculous."

"Yeah, I suppose," Sirius admitted, "Still, you are spending your Saturday afternoon looking up the meaning behind matching Patronuses. Even you can't be that committed to your classwork."

He grinned and went to walk away, when Lily sighed, "You're right."

Sirius spluttered and turned so abruptly that he knocked over a stack of books, "What!?"

"Not about _that_," Lily snapped, "I just gave up a perfectly good Saturday, to sit around in the library and focus on something that really doesn't matter. It's trivial. It's meaningless. It was just a fluke."

"I wouldn't say that," Sirius said, thoughtfully.

"Regardless," Lily sighed, "I did what I always do—I obsessed about it, as if that could possibly make a difference."

"No," Sirius said, softly, "The fact that you care about it makes all the difference in the world."

"What do you think it means, then?" Lily asked, mellifluously.

Yet, Sirius never had the chance to share his opinion. Madam Pince flew around the corner, her skin as white as the leaves of the book.

"Alright, I was just leaving," Sirius sighed.

It was evident that this was not her concern, "There's been a Death Eater attack, not too far from here!"

"_What_?"

She wrung her hands and continued, "Professor Dumbledore is bringing the students back from Hogsmeade. They're meeting in the Great Hall!"

Sirius and Lily were already running. They reached the Entrance Hall, and became swept up in a sea of panicking students. They were filing into the Great Hall, ever so slowly. Argus Filch and Professor Flitwick were checking everyone. Parcels were abandoned on the floor. First years were being squashed against the wall.

"Remain calm!" Lily shouted, "Let me through!"

A cheeky third-year went to hold her back, "I've been waiting for five minutes! Why do you get to go in?"

"Because," Lily snapped, "I'm the Head Girl."

"You heard her," Sirius roared, "Let us through!"

"Why do _you_ get to go in?"

"Because," Sirius said, with a grim smile, "I'm a Marauder."

Indeed, the other Marauders were already inside, having first arrived. They were talking with Professor Dumbledore, looking serious and professional. Things like these, though horrible, always brought out the best in the Marauders. James' father was an Auror, causing them to have a severe hatred for the Dark Arts.

"What happened?" Sirius demanded, joining them.

James merely shook his head, sinking to the ground.

"What happened?" Sirius repeated, more frantically, "Is it your father? He's not—"

"He's fine," James mumbled, "Four other Aurors are on their way to the morgue. At least a dozen are in Saint Mungo's."

"What happened?" Lily and Sirius shouted.

"The Death Eaters targeted a town, about thirty miles south of here," Lupin explained, gravely. His voice broke as he whispered, "They brutally assaulted and tortured three dozen children, before finally killing them."

"No," Lily gasped, her hands flying to her mouth. She took a steadying breath, before asking for an answer that she already knew, "They were all Muggles?"

Lupin turned away, nodding. Lily took a copy of the Daily Prophet from his hands, but immediately realized that she couldn't read it, without breaking down. She sank to the ground next to James, feeling lost and helpless.

"Damn it," she whispered, as the tears came.

She wept for the lost lives, for several minutes. She finally looked up, apologetically. The others shook their heads, assuredly. She didn't have to apologize.

Next to her, Sirius seemed to be shaking with anger. Lily called his name, but he didn't respond. James looked up, right as Sirius grabbed the Daily Prophet. He leapt up and swiftly crossed the Great Hall.

"Where's he going?" Lupin asked, alarmed.

James and Lily's eyes widened, as they both realized exactly where Sirius was going. By the time they ran forward, it was too late. Sirius had already grabbed Regulus, practically shaking him.

"Is this what you want to become?" Sirius roared.

"Gerroff me!" Regulus cried, pushing him away. Sirius ignored him.

"Look at this," Sirius demanded, showing him the paper, "You're quite proud of this, aren't you? No, look at it! Three dozen children assaulted, tortured, killed… They won't get to see a Christmas, this year. Their families will be scarred, for life."

Regulus turned away, but Sirius wasn't finished, "LOOK AT IT! What's the matter? This is what you want, isn't it? You want to become a Death Eater? You wanted to make Mummy and Daddy proud?"

"Sirius, stop it!" Lily suddenly cried, "This isn't helping anyone!"

Sirius glanced around, realizing that she was right. Half of Hogwarts was staring at him, wide-eyed.

"Come on, mate," James said, slowly.

Sirius sighed, closing his eyes. There was so much more that he wanted to say, but Lily was right. It wouldn't do any good.

So he let his brother go, and joined his friends on the other side of the Great Hall.

"All right?" Lupin asked, anxiously.

"No," Sirius said, bitterly.

He gave Regulus one more look, though this one held pity. James put a bracing hand on his shoulder, a silent conversation passing between the two of them.

By now, the other students had all made it safely inside. Professor Dumbledore gave a speech that went unheard by Lily. Eventually, he conjured up hundreds of sleeping bags.

"I'm going to have them sleep in here, for tonight," he told James and Lily, "I'll have you keep an eye on them, while we secure the rest of the castle. It's all precautionary, but it's better to be safe than sorry. Sweet dreams."

There was no way that Lily was having any dreams, let alone sweet ones. James seemed to silently agree. Instead, he turned to Peter and gave him a grim and pleading look. Peter's eyes widened, but he slowly nodded. James, Sirius, and Lupin stepped around Peter, engaging in a sort of group-hug. When they stepped back, Peter was gone. Lily watched as a rat scurried through a crack in the wall.

"He'll be alright?" Lily asked, anxiously.

"Of course he will," James said, "The Death Eaters aren't here, after all. You okay, Moony?"

For Lupin had suddenly doubled over, looking rather green.

"Ah," James said, "That's tomorrow, isn't it?"

Lupin nodded, "It's fine, really. I'm fine."

"What is it?" Lily asked, "What's tomorrow?"

"Do the math, Evans," James said, distractedly.

For a moment, Lily had no idea what he was talking about. Then it hit her, "The full moon? The full moon, that's tomorrow? Blimey, what do we do? Should we…we need to…"

She broke off, noting that the others were staring at her, quite amused.

"And I thought the two of you were paranoid, when it came to my lycanthropy," Lupin chuckled, "It's alright, Lily. I'll slip down to the Shrieking Shack, tomorrow evening, the same as I've always done."

"Right," Lily said, her blood-pressure still elevated.

The Marauders and Lily managed to get the rest of the students to bed, metaphorically speaking. The night slowly slipped away. Lily eventually sat against a pillar, drawing her knees to her chest.

"Does Dumbledore honestly expect anyone to sleep?" Lupin whispered. Indeed, hundreds of eyes glowed in the darkness.

"No," Lily said, quietly, "He expects us to endure."

The lockdown stretched on. Mere seconds turned to hours. The amount of blinking eyes reduced and a sea of snores began to arise.

Peter appeared quite suddenly. He crouched down, shaking his head, "It was a freak attack. They're not coming to Hogwarts, or anywhere close to it."

Lily breathed a sigh of relief, but it was short-lived. After all, it was still a horrible tragedy.

She hadn't realized that she had spoken aloud, until James nodded in agreement, "At least everyone here is safe."

"For now," Sirius added, bitterly.

The five stood over the sleeping students, protectively.

"Would you look at that," Lupin suddenly whispered, "Gryffindors, Ravenclaws, Hufflepuffs, and Slytherins…they're all together."

Lily realized that he was right. The sleeping bags were randomly scattered. Students of different Houses were sleeping next to each other. In a twisted way, the war had brought all of them together. Tomorrow morning, they would wake up and go their separate ways. They would enter their Common Rooms, feeling courageous, intelligent, loyal, or maladaptive. And yet, none of that mattered now. For as Lily looked across the students, she realized that she wasn't looking at students from Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, or Slytherin. She was looking at Hogwarts.

It was quite clear that the others were thinking the same thing.

Sirius stepped forward, suddenly. Once again, he was walking towards Regulus.

Lily stepped forward, but James caught her arm, holding her back.

Lily watched, amazed, as Sirius grabbed a spare blanket from the corner, draping it around his sleeping brother.

He snuck back over, looking grim.

"Why?" Lily asked, tenderly.

"I dunno," Sirius admitted, "It probably didn't make a difference."

Lily suddenly smiled, and repeated Sirius' earlier advice, "The fact that you care about it makes all the difference in the world."

() () () () ()

Dumbledore released the students, the following morning. Lily headed to her dormitory, and slept the day away. She awoke and went down to the Common Room; once again finding herself bumping into Sirius.

"I was just looking for you," Sirius said, "I'm heading down to the Shrieking Shack. So, if you need us…well, try to hold out, until the morning."

"Sirius, wait!" Lily cried, rushing to catch up with him. He slowed, but looked as though he regretted doing so. His presumptions were right, as Lily said, "I want to come with you."

"No," Sirius said, firmly, "Absolutely not."

"But I want—"

"No! Remus would murder you, and then James would murder me," Sirius said, in a tone that asked for no arguments.

Lily hung her head, realizing that he was right. Sirius softened, saying, "Listen, Remus has enough to worry about, without worrying about hurting anyone else. He already feels tremendously guilty, when we go with him. Let alone—"

He broke off, before whispering, "—anyone else. Ah no!"

"What?" Lily said, surprised by the sudden change of his demeanor, "What is it?"

"Look!" Sirius cried, pointing, "Look out there!"

Lily glanced out the window. The snow fell in heavy sheets, making it nearly impossible to see. And yet, she could just make out two figures, in the light of the moon, creeping towards the Whomping Willow.

"Is that James and Peter?" Lily asked.

"No," Sirius cried, "They should already be in the Shrieking Shack! Besides, the last time I checked, James and Peter didn't have such womanly figures, which means that they're, in fact, two women. Judging on _how _curvy they are, they have to be Seventh Years. Don't give me that look, this is important. It can't be Alice, because her blonde hair would be visible, in the moonlight, which means we're looking at two Seventh-Year girls, with darker hair, who are on their way to the Whomping Willow…Were Marlene and Mary in the dormitory?"

"No," Lily whispered, suddenly frightened.

The two practically flew through the castle, bursting out onto the snowy grounds.

"No, not good," Sirius murmured, grabbing the two of them, "This is bad; very bad. Why are you here? What are you doing? Get away from there!"

"What's your problem?" Marlene cried.

"You shouldn't be here," Sirius stammered, "You shouldn't be anywhere near here…it's a bad place. An evil place, really. Quite dangerous. Come on. Let's go."

"But we saw Remus come towards here," Mary protested, wide-eyed.

"What? Who? When?" Sirius demanded.

"Remus," Mary cried, "We saw him go towards the Whomping Willow!"

"Preposterous," Sirius said, "Maddening, really. You're mad. Both of you have gone round the bend. Remus is obviously not here and you shouldn't be here, either."

"Then, what are you doing here?" Marlene snapped. She suddenly seemed to spot Lily, for her eyes widened before narrowing, "Lily? What's going on?"

"Nothing," Sirius answered for her, "Nothing. We weren't doing anything, anywhere, except stopping you two from doing something around here."

"It's a prank," Lily suddenly spoke up, "It's a bloody prank, alright? Now, get out of here, before you spoil it."

"You're helping with a prank?" Marlene asked, disbelievingly.

Lily crossed her arms, indignantly, "Yes. So what if I am?"

"It's just not _you_," Marlene snapped, "You've changed."

"Oh, excuse me," Lily cried, her hands flying to her hips, "But, I'm pretty sure that I know who I am, Marlene McKinnon."

"Come on, Mary," Marlene huffed, whirling around.

"Sorry," Sirius called, "I'll make it up to you, though. Fancy a drink, tomorrow?"

She shot him a glare, "I don't think so. Why don't you buy Molly a drink?"

"M…Molly?" Sirius blinked.

"Or Jane," Marlene said, her face flushed with anger, "Or perhaps Paula. Or, any other bird that you have gotten with, in the past month!"

"Technically, Paula and I got together, last month," Sirius said, rubbing the back of his neck.

Lily crossed her arms, exasperatedly glancing up at him, "Really?"

"Listen," Sirius said, ignoring Lily, "You're not like those birds. You're different. You're much less . . . birdier."

"Birdier, really?" Lily cried, utterly irritated, "Honestly Black…"

It seemed that Marlene agreed, for she turned on her heel and left.

"Marly!" Sirius cried, "I'm sorry!"

Lily rolled her eyes, but then caught sight of Sirius' expression. Could it be—he actually looked sincere!

"Oh bloody hell," she sighed, and raced after Marlene.

She caught her friend's shoulder and quietly said, "Marlene, wait! Listen, I know that Sirius can be a right bastard, sometimes. I know that he may seem thoughtless and arrogant immature. Believe me, I know. But deep down, I believe that he really cares about you. He can be a brilliant person, when he wants to be. If he really puts his mind to it, he can even be a brilliant friend. Just give him another chance, and I'm sure…"

Marlene shook her head, "No. No, I've given him enough chances."

She drew her cloak close to her, and stomped away. Mary gave Lily a sad look, before racing after Marlene.

Lily swallowed, trying to sort out what had just happened.

Sirius came up behind her and quietly said, "Tell me, Evans, what exactly were you expecting? Were you expecting a picture-perfect ending? It doesn't exist. Besides, even if it did, it's not what you'd imagine it to be. We aren't kings and queens. This isn't a fairytale. There is no happily-ever-after."

They turned, upon hearing footsteps. James had appeared in the entrance of the tunnel, already looking tattered, "Come on, mate! What're you waiting for?"

"Sorry," Sirius said, "We had a small snag but everything's sorted."

James nodded before turning to Lily, "All right?"

"Fine," Lily sighed, "Just, do me a favor?"

She stepped forward and gave him a small peck on the cheek, "Please, be careful."

James smiled, "Always."

He disappeared into the tunnel. Sirius winked, and followed him. As Lily went back to the school, she thought about what Sirius had said. She then decided that it didn't matter. She was going to create her own ending.

Author's Note: I feel as though Sirius was a bit out-of-of character, in this chapter and I do apologize. He's going through a lot, right now! And I know you're wondering why I'm adding a lot of Sirius and Lily moments. Well, Lily didn't just accept James, in her Seventh Year. She accepted the Marauders, as her friends. And that's a pretty hard transition.


	11. Chapter 11

_But in the end, you're still my friend. At least we didn't tend for us to work. We didn't break, we didn't burn._

() () () () ()

Author's Note: We're running out of lyrics, which means that the story is almost over. I'd say we have two more chapters after this. And yes, I know that this chapter is probably a bit cliché, but in my defence, I didn't kill anyone!

Actually, that's quite a good defence: I didn't kill anyone!

Chapter Eleven

Lily knew that it was going to be a horrid day, the moment she broke Peter's nose. Mind you, she never intended to break Peter's nose. He was very understanding, but Lily still felt horrible about the whole ordeal. She had been practicing a rather tricky spell, for her Charms' homework. She supposed that she flicked her wrist the wrong way, for her wand shot out of her hand, zoomed across the Common Room, and hit Peter in the nose, causing it to swell.

"Iff noffing," Peter assured, as she profusely apologized.

Lily quickly retrieved her wand, before muttering a few quick spells to bring his nose back to a normal size.

"Thanks," Peter said, appreciatively.

"No, no," Lily sighed, "Don't thank me. I'm sorry, I was just thinking…"

"Don't worry about it," Peter said, upliftingly, "Honestly, with the amount of injuries I've obtained, from James and Sirius…"

"Peter, I need to ask you something," Lily suddenly burst out.

"Go on," Peter said, mildly surprised.

"Mind you, I was going to ask Remus," Lily said, hastily, "I just don't want to worry him, especially just after…"

"I know," Peter said, when she couldn't finish her sentence, "What is it, Red—Lily?"

"Why does Sirius hate Regulus?" Lily burst out.

"Sirius doesn't hate Regulus!" Peter snorted, as if the mere thought was astounding.

This was news to Lily, "The other day saw him screaming in Regulus' face."

Peter didn't deny this. He leaned forward, deeply thinking, "Listen, it's a rather delicate topic. Sirius doesn't hate Regulus, but I imagine that he hates what Regulus has become. What would you do, if Petunia began to root for Voldemort?"

"I couldn't even imagine it," Lily admitted, "I mean, our relationship has definitely deteriorated, but to think that she would stoop that low…"

"Precisely," Peter said, "Honestly, though, that's what Sirius' family has done, their entire lives. That's why Sirius was living in hell. That's why he eventually ran away and moved in with James."

"He did?" Lily asked, surprised.

"Blimey, didn't you know?" Peter exclaimed, "His parents disowned him. As far as they're concerned, Sirius is no longer their son."

"So does that mean that Regulus is no longer his brother?" Lily asked, slowly.

"Well that's just it," Peter sighed, "Regulus has always been the 'model' son. This, in his parents' eyes, equates to being a supporter of the Dark Arts. I imagine that it's easier than having to go through the things that Sirius did. Sirius got out, though. And that's the true difference between the two brothers. For whatever reason, Regulus doesn't have enough strength to join Sirius. I imagine that puts a bit of tension on their relationship."

Lily nodded, taking everything in. She looked up and quietly said, "You didn't answer my question, though. Does Sirius still consider Regulus to be his brother?"

"Would you?"

Lily and Peter both jumped, spinning around. Sirius was standing by the fireplace, giving them a twisted smile. In his hand, he held the Invisibility Cloak.

"Will you stop doing that?" Lily demanded.

"Not until your face stops being priceless," Sirius said, in jest, "Besides, I wouldn't pass up the chance to hear the two of you dissect my life."

"I'm sorry," Lily said, sincerely, "I just wanted to know…"

"You deserve to know," Sirius agreed, "Do note, however, that if you have any questions, you can always ask me, personally. Not that I'll answer all of them, mind you."

"Right," Lily said, slowly, "So, do you consider Regulus to be your brother?"

Something clouded in Sirius' eyes, "Petunia's been horrid to you, these past few years. She has called you a freak, and has treated you like vermin."

"That's unfair!" Lily cried, defensively.

"It's the truth," Sirius said, bitterly.

"Well, we're not talking about Petunia and I," Lily countered.

"Suppose that we were," Sirius challenged, "Even after everything that she's done, what would you still call her?"

Lily closed her eyes, before whispering, "My sister."

"There you go," Sirius said, firmly.

"It's not the same!"

"But it's not entirely different," Sirius pointed out.

"You're lucky, though," Lily reminded him, "You have the Marauders to fall back on, whenever your real family lets you down."

"As opposed to you," Sirius agreed, sardonically, "Nah, the Marauders have never helped you out."

"It's not the same," Lily repeated.

Sirius leaned forward and softly reiterated, "But it's not entirely different."

() () () () ()

James thought that the ordeal with Peter's nose was simply hysterical. Peter cheerfully told the story, that night, to anyone who would listen. As it turns out, the only two were James and Sirius, who threw their heads back, laughing. Their cheerfulness was subsided, however, as Lupin scrambled through the portrait hole. His eyes were wide, and he looked as though he carried grievance. James caught sight of him, his smile fading, "What is it, Moony?"

"Lily's on her way to the hospital," Lupin managed, breathing rather heavily.

"What?" James, Sirius, and Peter all leapt up.

"What happened?" James cried, "Is she…?"

"She's fine," Lupin said, gravely, "It's her father. He had a heart attack, this morning."

James' own heart plummeted, "Oh no."

"How did you find out?" Sirius asked, alarmed.

"Professor McGonagall found me in the corridor," Lupin explained, austerely.

"We're going to the hospital," James said, firmly. The others agreed, indisputably.

"I have some Floo Powder in my trunk," Sirius offered.

"It's a Muggle hospital, Sirius," Lupin grimaced, "We can't use the Floo."

"Why wouldn't they go to Saint Mungo's?" Peter asked.

"She's the only magical one in her family," James pointed out.

"Yes, but they know that she's a witch, so the Muggle laws don't exactly apply to them, do they?" Sirius asked, "After all, they were able to get onto Platform 9 ¾."

James raised his eyebrows, having not considered that. He shook his head, however, "Regardless, they're at the Muggle hospital, which is where we need to be."

"Professor McGonagall gave me the address," Lupin said, showing them, "She said that we're free to do what we have to, so long as we don't act like complete idiots."

"Has she met us?" Sirius chuckled.

"That's close to my house," Peter spoke up, "We can take the Floo there and walk over."

"Right, let's go," James said. He ran upstairs, grabbing several necessities, including the Floo Powder and the pea coats from Slughorn's party.

"Put these on," he demanded, upon returning to the Common Room.

"Why?" Sirius asked.

"It's a Muggle hospital," James reminded him, "We can't just show up in our robes."

The four quickly changed, crossing to the fireplace and adding the powder. Bright, emerald, flames leapt up into the hearth. James stepped in, roaring, "Pettigrew household."

He found himself whirling around in a vortex of green light. He felt rather sick, and willed himself to not vomit. He finally stumbled out, landing on the floor of what appeared to be a children's nursery. He knew it to be Peter's room, and straightened up, brushing the soot off.

The others arrived, one by one. Fortunately, Peter's bedroom was on the ground floor. They slipped out the window, without his parents knowing the wiser.

The walk to the hospital was a brisk and quiet one. The streets of London were frosted over, and the air was cold and harsh. Upon entering the lobby, they noticed that the hospital didn't look that different from any others, except perhaps Saint Mungo's. The walls and floors were white, and so sterile that they were nearly reflective. Several dying pots of flowers were standing on mismatched tables. Half a dozen receptionists were behind a large desk, talking rapidly. Nurses were running to and fro, their faces hidden behind large masks.

James realized that he wasn't quite sure where to go.

Lupin, who had taken Muggle Studies, thought aloud, "If I remember correctly, they would've most likely taken Mister Evans to the Intensive Care Unit."

"That's on the fourth floor," Peter said, checking the directory.

"Come on," James said, motioning to the lift. When it stopped on the fourth floor, the four stumbled out into a small waiting area that was in the corner of a long, white, hallway. The translucent lights flickered overhead, and James suddenly remembered that he didn't really fancy hospitals. He shook off the feeling, realizing that there were more important priorities.

The four turned, and saw a group of three sitting in the corner. Lily had risen, and was looking both surprised and touched. Sheridan, who had been sitting next to her, looked equally surprised and not at all touched. That left Lily's sister—Petunia. Petunia didn't share Lily's good looks, and instead looked rather horsey. She had a long neck, sleek blonde hair, and was wearing too much makeup and a scowl.

"Thanks for coming," Lily said, softly. She hugged the four, individually. James glanced over at Sheridan, questioningly.

"I…I know," Lily said, miserably, "I didn't know what else to do! He was in the library, when Professor McGonagall came to tell me and I needed someone…"

"It's fine," James soothed, "It's alright, honest. Are you alright? Is your father alright?"

"I don't know," Lily said, tearfully, "He went into surgery, a few hours ago. Mum is with him, and the doctors won't tell us anything."

She broke down, sobbing into his chest. James hugged her, comfortingly.

"Excuse me?"

A beefy, black, nurse was marching towards them, "Where did you four come from?"

"The lift, ma'am," James said, straight-faced.

The matron put her hands to her hips, "I'm sorry, but only direct family members are allowed to visit. I'm going to have to ask you to leave."

James raised his eyebrows, glancing down at Sheridan. Before he could say anything, however, Lily spoke up, "These four are my brothers."

All eyes turned to her.

"They're your brothers?" the matron repeated, skeptically.

Lily glanced at James for help, and he quickly said, "Oh yeah. Can't you see the resemblance?"

"We're practically identical," Sirius added, his mouth twitching.

The nurse huffed, but glanced over at Lily and softened, "Very well. But you best be sure that your _brothers_ stay out of trouble."

She walked away, shaking her head.

When she was out of earshot, Petunia leapt up and hissed, "Lily, get your freaky friends out of here! I will not be seen with them!"

"They came to support me," Lily snapped, "Which is a hell of a lot more than you've been doing."

Sheridan, who had remained silent, finally spoke up, "Maybe they should leave. After all, they're usually nothing but trouble."

"No," Lily said, firmly, "They're staying."

James nodded, and they took their seats. After all, they could only wait.

An hour passed, uneventfully. At one point, Sirius got up and began to pace. He glanced into a patient's room, his brow furrowed, "What's that thing connected to the man's arm?"

"That's an intravenous tube," Lupin hissed, "Get out of there."

Sirius, however, looked even more confused, "Yes, but what's in the bag?"

"It's medicine," Lupin cried, leaping up and forcefully leading him back to his seat.

"These bloody Muggle doctors are nuts," Sirius shook his head, "Who ever heard of administering medicine through your arm?"

Lily was just about to comment on where Sirius could stick the intravenous needle, when the doors to their left swung open, and a doctor came in. Immediately, everyone leapt up.

"Miss and Miss Evans?" the doctor shook Lily and Petunia's hands, "He's out of surgery, but I'm afraid that it's not the best news."

The doctor went into a long, medical, rant that James couldn't comprehend. It was evident that nobody else did, either.

"I don't…I don't understand what you're saying," Lily finally admitted, "Can I see my father?"

"How old are you?" he asked, pained.

"Seventeen," Lily whispered.

The doctor sighed, "I'm afraid not. Nobody under the age of eighteen is allowed in."

Lily's face crumpled.

James pulled out his wand, ready to Confund the doctor. Or Stupefy him. Or possibly use one of the Unforgivable Curses. Whatever it took.

He shook his head, slowly repocketing his wand.

Next to him, Sirius whispered, "You're not going to do anything?"

"I can't," James replied, "There are Muggles all around us."

Sirius' reply was drowned out by Petunia, who spoke up, "I'm nineteen."

She pulled out identification. The doctor read it over, clearly troubled.

"Very well," he finally said, "Follow me."

"Wait," Lily cried, "You have to let me in! Please!"

James put a hand on her shoulder, but Lily wrenched away, "Please! I need to see him!"

"Lily, calm down," James said, rather sharply. The doctor gave her another regretful look, before taking Petunia away.

"I'll tell you everything," Petunia promised.

"No!" Lily cried, practically losing it. By now, several nurses had hurried over.

"Perhaps you should head up to the ninth floor? It's the Family Centre. There's a nice cafeteria, and a playroom for children. We'll update you, if anything happens."

Lily took a shuddering breath, wiping her eyes, before finally nodding.

The group piled into the lift. As soon as the doors closed, however, James turned, "Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, you and Sheridan go up to the ninth floor."

"What about you?" Peter asked.

James didn't answer, and instead pulled something out of his pocket. It unfolded before them, and the other Marauders smiled. Sheridan, as usual, was not content, "Is that an Invisibility Cloak?"

"Yes," James said.

"You have an Invisibility Cloak?"

"Yes, we've established that," James snapped. He draped the cloak over himself and Lily, just as the lift came to a screeching halt.

"Good luck, mates," Sirius whispered.

Lupin nodded, solemnly, "We'll be waiting."

Peter gave Sheridan a sharp push, and the other three clambered onto the floor.

"Where are we going?" Lily whispered, as the doors closed.

"Well, I thought that we'd take a leisurely sightseeing tour around London," James said, pleasantly, "But first, how about we go visit your father?"

Lily rolled her eyes at the sarcasm, but nodded.

They snuck through the hospital, before finally reaching her father's room. He was awake, though he looked dreadful.

"Dad!" Lily gasped. Before James could stop her, she ducked out from beneath the Invisibility Cloak and ran to her father's bedside. James silently swore, but realized that there was no one else around, save Petunia.

"Evening, sir," James said, pulling off the cloak, "How are you feeling?"

"I've had better days," the frail man said, hugging his daughter, "You must be James Potter. Lily's written about you."

"Really?" James said, pleased. He glanced at the medical file on the table, before drawing his attention back to the patient.

"Dad," Lily said, quite embarrassed, "Don't exaggerate."

"She spoke well of you," Mr. Evans offered.

"Well sir," James said, "I have a proposition for you."

Mr. Evans looked amused, but he soon grew serious, "I'm listening."

James took a seat, choosing his words carefully, "I'm sure that you want to have the best care available. Unfortunately, you're not going to find that, here. It's nothing personal, but _we_ can do better."

"We?" Mr. Evans asked for clarification.

"Their kind," Petunia sniffed, as though already realizing what James was getting at.

"Precisely," James nodded, "Come to Saint Mungo's, sir. It's _our_ hospital. You'll be healed, in no time."

"I'm afraid that I can't," Mr. Evans said, looking worried, "I'm a . . . whatchamacallit . . . a Miggle. I'm not a wizard."

"A Muggle," James corrected, "It _is_ normally only for witches and wizards, but seeing as how Lily's your daughter, you can still see the Healers."

"Healers?" Mr. Evans asked.

"They're our version of doctors," James explained, "Only instead of shoving medicine up your arm, for a few months, they'll wave their wands and you'll be home by tomorrow morning."

"No, absolutely not," Petunia leapt up, "I will not allow this."

"I don't know," Mr. Evans said, "If they could do something…But you're only seventeen. What could you do?"

"My father just so happens to be an Auror," James said, puffing out his chest, "I can have him pull some strings. It's about time I did so, for a good cause."

"Potter, could you really do that?" Lily asked, amazed.

James smiled, "They're already on their way. I used the two-way mirror to call him, in the dormitory, before we came over."

"Thank you," Lily whispered, her eyes watery.

"Now hang on," Petunia snapped, "I am not about to have my father be experimented on, by a bunch of freaks!"

She looked venomous as she said, "That's what you are. You're not wizards or healers or miracle workers. You're freaks with your freaky hospital. Well, we will not be a part of it."

James sighed, heavily, "Petunia, a word."

He gestured to the empty hallway, but Petunia looked as though she'd rather swallow a hornet's nest. Still, she reluctantly followed him.

"You have to do this," James whispered, "I've seen your father's medical file. He seems fine, right now. He's not going to last. Soon, he will become comatose and unresponsive."

"You're bluffing," Petunia hissed.

"Listen, I know that you're scared," James said, "I know that it's got to be hard, for your sister to be a witch. I mean, she's bloody extraordinary."

Petunia stared at him for a moment, before whispering, "You fancy her, don't you? That's why you're going through all of this trouble?"

When James gave a curt nod, Petunia merely shook her head, "Well, that figures. What boy doesn't love Lily?"

"Is that what you think?" James laughed, "Is that what you really think? That Lily is some spectacular student, who still manages to have a dozen boys chase after her? Do you have any idea what she goes through, on a daily basis? No? Lucky you. She broke down, one night, and informed me. First off, she broke it off with her boyfriend."

"She did," Petunia looked surprised, "She didn't tell me."

"Why would she?" James asked, "You haven't been very accepting, have you? It's a bloody amazement how she's been able to put up with you. Especially when she stays up all night, stressing about the fact that Voldemort could kill you, at any moment. Voldemort? He's a manic, powerful, wizard, who just happens to have a severe hatred towards Muggles. In fact, he has an army out there, that's killing them off. You know those bad things that you see in the news? Those aren't coincidences. So, a quarter of the students in our school hate Lily, because she's a Muggle-born. You hate her, because she's a witch."

"I don't hate her," Petunia whispered.

"THEN PROVE IT," James shouted, "For Merlin's sake, I'm not asking you to fully embrace her. I'm asking you to trust her! I'm asking her to trust me. So, I need you to trust the both of us."

"Why should I trust you?" Petunia asked, "Who are you, anyway?"

James gave her a twisted smile, "I'm a Marauder."

His patience worn thin, he pulled out his wand and whispered, "Confundus."

Immediately, Petunia's eyes glazed over.

"Right," James said, loudly, "Ready to take your father to Saint Mungo's?"

She nodded, "Yes, of course."

"Brilliant," James said, smirking.

Things were turning around.

() () () () ()

The next few hours passed in a blur. James' father arrived, with several Healers.

Mr. Potter tipped his hat and said, "Lily Evans, I presume? It's wonderful to finally meet you. I've heard a lot about you."

They were kind as they spoke to Mr. Evans, who looked simply delighted. He was like a tot in a candy shop. At some point, Lily linked her arm around James'. He didn't question this, but couldn't help but to be pleased by it.

Eventually, the Healers realized that it would be an utter nuisance to transfer Mr. Evans from one hospital to another. Instead, they formed a different plan. Several of them Apparated, and reappeared with several potion vials.

Petunia stood next to them, smiling, "They're rather good at that, aren't they?"

"Did you Confund my sister?" Lily hissed.

"Yes," James sighed, "Don't worry. I can get it sorted."

"Well, wait a minute," Lily said, slyly, "There's no rush."

"Alright, Mister Evans," Healer Hudson chirped, "We'll just have you swallow these, and you should be back to yourself in no time."

"Brilliant," Mr. Evans cried, "You people are truly brilliant."

He swallowed the potions in one gulp. Within moments, his color had returned. Lily felt her lip tremble, out of gratitude.

"You do realize that we just broke about fifty laws?" Mr. Potter asked.

"Welcome to my world," James grinned.

A fourth Healer entered the room, "I've _spoken _to the orderlies. They're going to keep Mister Evans overnight, for observation. He should be released, in the morning. The potion should allow you to sleep, until then."

Indeed, Mr. Evans' eyes drooped and he soon began to snore.

"Thank you," Lily whispered, "Thank you, so much. I can't…"

Mr. Potter understood, "Well, we'll leave you. It looks like you're in good hands. Literally."

Lily suddenly seemed to realize that she was still holding James' arm. She quickly let go, flushing as she did so.

Mr. Potter and the others smiled and Apparated away.

"Come on," James whispered, "Let's get back to the others."

"Wait, aren't you forgetting something?" Lily asked.

"Huh? Oh!" James turned to Petunia and quickly removed the curse, "Sorry about that. Your father is going to be fine. So, no worries?"

She looked livid, and James and Lily quickly took that as their cue to leave. They practically ran to the ninth floor. When they finally collapsed, they burst out laughing, from sheer adrenaline and exhaustion.

"Thank you," Lily whispered, hugging him, "I know that I've said it before, but I just can't believe…I never would've thought…"

"You're welcome," James said. He then put a finger to his lips, opening the door to the Family Centre. It was quite obvious that silence was unnecessary. James and Lily both smiled, as they saw what the source of the noise was.

At least a dozen children were grouped around Peter and Lupin. The two were laughing, playing with the youngsters. Each child sported a hospital gown. Several of them were missing hair, but none of them were missing a smile. A black dog bounded about, his tail wagging. Several children chased after him, tackling him.

"Where's Sheridan?" Lily asked.

"Dunno," Lupin said.

"Don't care," Peter offered.

Lily realized that she didn't, either. She then realized that Lupin was waving his wand, causing hundreds of sparks to fly out of the tip.

"What are you doing?" Lily whispered, "We're around Muggles."

"Yeah," Lupin admitted, "It's alright, though. They're innocent enough, that the Ministry isn't going to barge in. Besides, it's just a few sparks."

"And possibly some _bubbles_," Peter cried, waving his own wand. Thousands of bubbles flew around. The tots laughed and tried to catch them.

Lupin leaned towards her and whispered, "Honestly, it's not as though anyone is going to believe them, anyway. Let them have their fun. They've gone through enough, here."

Lily nodded, but found herself frowning.

"What is it?" James whispered.

"Nobody will believe them," Lily said, sadly, "I know what that felt like, James. When I was their age, I was already showing little spurts of magic. Only, nobody believed me."

"Huh," James said, thoughtfully, "That's good, though."

Lily looked up.

"Think about it," James chuckled, "It's magic, Lily. If everybody knew about it, it wouldn't be so . . .magical."

Lily smiled at this, giving him a look of utmost gratitude. Several feet away, Lupin and Peter exchanged rather knowledgeable looks.

Peter then looked at the children and cried, "Oi! Isn't there a frozen yogurt machine, in the cafeteria?"

"Yes," a small girl said, sadly, "Only, it's locked."

"Well, we'll soon fix that," Lupin smiled.

Sirius gave a joyful bark, his tail wagging.

"Alright then, follow him!" Peter roared.

The tots laughed, chasing after a puzzled looking Sirius. They clambered into the next room, leaving James and Lily to themselves.

Lily leaned towards him and whispered, "So, you guys are bloody bastards, except when it comes to little children?"

"And the parents of friends," James agreed.

The two sat down, their adrenaline crashing.

Lily smiled, leaning against his shoulder, "I'm glad you came, James." She fell asleep, several minutes later, knowing that James would be there, when she woke up.


	12. Chapter 12

Author's Note: Welcome to the penultimate chapter. Thanks for your wonderful reviews. It's been a lot of fun. I know that bits of this chapter are going to seem rushed. I'm trying to write this from Lily's view, as much as possible. So, when her life seems rushed and she doesn't have time to breathe, it's going to be rushed. When she's taking time to breathe and look around, it'll seem slow and I'll put more effort into describing everything around her.

Also, I don't know how many requests I've gotten to reveal the meaning behind Lily's nickname. Well . . . I'm not going to! However, if you refer to the quotes section, you will see the song that I was listening to, when I thought of it. There's also a great Sirius / Lily bonding moment that really fits along with the song. So, without further ado:

() () () () ()

_Red – the blood of angry men! / Black – the dark of ages past! / Red – a world about to dawn! / Black – the night that ends at last! . . . . . . Red – the colour of desire! / Black – the colour of despair._

_We had to learn how to bend, without the world caving in. I had to learn what I've got, what I'm not, and who I am._

() () () () ()

Chapter Twelve

Lily sighed, wondering how it got to be like this. Peter was on the floor, nursing a swollen eye. Marlene was scrambling to grab her wand. Alice was tangled in her bed-sheet, and then her curtains. Mary was rushing off towards the bathroom, muttering about a nervous bladder. Lily, herself, was breathing quite heavily but she managed to calm the others, before turning onto Peter.

"How did you get up here?"

"Turned into a rat and climbed up the railing," Peter whispered, so that only Lily could hear, "Err, do you have something for this?"

Lily sighed, murmuring several spells that caused the swelling to go down, "Good shot, Marlene."

Marlene gave them a triumphant smile, "I will jinx you again, unless you tell us what you're doing up here."

"The eggs are hatching," Peter cried.

Lily gasped, "Oh! Alright, just let me change…"

"Forget about that," Alice cried, excitedly, "Come on!"

"But I'm in my nightie!" Lily protested.

"What are _we_ in?" Alice snorted, "Ball-gowns?"

Thus, the four girls dismissed their appearances and quickly raced after Peter. Lily just managed to cry out a warning, before Peter stepped on the staircase. Immediately, it transformed into a slide, and the five found themselves slipping down it.

They leapt up and promptly pelted through the castle, bursting outside. Lily realized that the sun hadn't risen, "What time is it, anyway?"

"Dunno, early," Peter responded, as they made their way to the Owlery.

It was about two weeks ago that Lily had gone to send a letter to her father, asking how he was recuperating. She soon realized that Athena was in no condition to fly. She had been roosting on a pile of eggs, with Nicodemus nearby.

Now, Lily quickly raced up the Owlery steps, careful to not slip on the ice. Upon entering, she found that the other Marauders had already arrived.

"Good morning, Red," James sniggered, "Splendid nightie."

"Sod off," Lily smiled, "Is it morning?"

"Two o'clock, to be exact," James said, checking his pocket-watch.

"How far along are they?" Mary asked Lupin. The two began to excitedly talk about the scientific process behind everything.

"The point is that they're coming any second," Sirius summarized.

"What is going on, here?"

Immediately, everyone spun around and tried to conjure an innocent demeanor.

Professor McGonagall was standing in the doorway, wearing a patched dressing gown and a scowl.

There was a slight commotion as Sirius, Lupin, Mary, Alice, Peter, and Marlene stepped backwards, leaving Lily and James to take the bullet.

"Why is it always you two?" Professor McGonagall asked, shaking her head.

"It's not always us," Lily said, surprised by the comment.

"Yet, lately it has been," Professor McGonagall sighed.

Sirius whispered something to Lupin, who snorted in agreement. Professor McGonagall's eyes narrowed, "Just because you moved two inches backwards, that does not mean that you're not in trouble, Mister Black."

Sirius gave her a wide smile, in return.

"What trouble?" James asked, smoothly, "We're not doing anything wrong."

"You're out of bed after hours," Professor McGonagall pointed out.

"No, no," James shook his head, smiling, "We're not out late. We're up early. Surely, there are no rules for being morning-people?"

"At a quarter past two, in the morning?"

"Morning is morning," James shrugged.

"Potter," Professor McGonagall said, warningly.

"It was worth a try," James admitted, "Alright, how about this? As you know, the Heads are allowed to be up after, or before, hours. This also goes for the Prefects, is that correct? And we're allowed to have one person, for company. Well, Lily and I are the Head Boy and Head Girl. Mary and Lupin are prefects. Sirius, Peter, Alice, and Marlene are merely our company."

Professor McGonagall put her hands to her hips.

"Professor, my owl's eggs are hatching," Lily said, truthfully.

"Well, why didn't you say so?" Professor McGonagall snapped, "Oh, very well. You can stay, but you will all serve a detention, after the holiday."

"Yes, Professor," the lot chorused.

She nodded and drew her dressing robe closer, marching away.

The others raced back over to Athena, in order to watch the miracle of life. Lily was one to admit that she got emotional when the eggs finally hatched. She wiped her eyes, embarrassed, before noticing that the others were just as sentimental.

All except Sirius who said, "They're so slimy."

"Oh, shut up," Marlene said, before tenderly kissing him.

Lily smiled at this, but pretended to not notice. Instead, she affectionately pet Athena and Nicodemus, and whispered, "Traitors."

James laughed, understanding the reference, "Aw, come on. You look pretty good for being a grandmother."

"Excuse me?" Lily snapped, putting her hands to her hips.

"Fine," James shrugged, "You look bloody ugly."

Lily rolled her eyes, returning to examine the owls. James shrugged, and light-heartedly said, "Damned if you do. Damned if you don't."

() () () () ()

For the second time that week, a scream pierced the silent night. Lily sat up, her ears alert, blinking into the darkness. It was a moment before she realized that she had been the one screaming. She quickly covered her mouth, mortified.

"Lily? What is it?"

"What's going on?"

"Are you okay?"

Alice, Marlene, and Mary's respective concerns echoed around the dormitory. Lily drew back the curtains of her four-poster and quickly said, "Yes, I'm fine. Sorry about that."

"Did you have a nightmare?" Alice asked.

"Not exactly," Lily said, slowly. In fact, it was a wonderful dream. But the fact that it was wonderful scared Lily. Several months ago, it could've very well been a nightmare.

"Then, why did you scream?"

She had actually had a dream about James Potter! Even worse, it was the third dream this week! Mind you, it wasn't as though it was an explicit dream. It was just . . . faces.

"Lily?"

It was his face, when he brought her up to the overhang. It was his face when she broke down, that one night when they were doing their rounds. It was his face when they were flying. It was his face when she stood up for Remus and when Sirius stood up for her and when she stood up for the Marauders and when the Marauders stood by her. It was his face when their Patroneses had matched. It was his face when he came to the hospital and when he convinced her father to seek help and, two weeks later, when they found out that Mr. Evans was as healthy as a horse. It was his face and it was…nice.

"Lily, why did you scream?" Alice demanded, for the third time.

"Because," Lily whispered, but of course she couldn't tell them the real reason.

She couldn't tell them that the tides had changed, that the impossible had occurred.

She couldn't tell them that she fancied James Potter.

She dismissed her friends and pulled the curtain, once more. She didn't go to sleep, however.

Instead, she drew her knees to her chest, trying to sort this out.

Alright, she fancied James Potter.

She needed to tell someone. Well, Lily supposed that she should probably start with telling him.

But what should she say?

She needed to write it down.

Lily rummaged through her trunk, careful as to not disturb the others, for they had fallen fast asleep. By the light of her wand, she scrawled several possibilities.

_Potter_

No, she needed to use his first name.

_Dear James Potter,_

_I'm sorry if this seems sudden. However, I've come to realize that._

Oh, that's quite attractive!

_My dearest James,_

_How is it that you are always there to catch me, when I fall? You are always there to light a path, in the darkest tunnels of my life. And though there was a time when I'd go a mile to get away from you, I now see that I cannot live without you, nor would I want to. You make me see the beauty in simplicity and you're the only one who understands it. I cannot believe that it has taken me this long to see that I truly love you._

_Lily_

Well, that certainly won't do!

_James,_

_Ever since the peck on the broomstick, I've wanted to push you up against a wall and snog you._

_Lily_

That could work!

Lily chuckled and crumpled the piece of parchment, before carefully lighting it ablaze. None of those would work; she needed to talk to him, in person.

Thus, she got out a new piece of parchment and wrote:

_James,_

_Meet me in the Common Room at 6:00 PM, tomorrow._

"There," Lily whispered, triumphantly. This way, the rest of the students would be at dinner. She tapped the paper with her wand. It folded into a small bird and flew through a crack in the door, heading towards the boys' dormitory.

() () () () ()

Lily might've actually missed her meeting with James. She had been frazzled all day, due to Alice reminding her that Christmas was only a few days away. Lily hadn't gotten any presents for anyone – she hadn't gone to Hogsmeade, with the others! Panicking, she managed to find Sirius in the courtyard. He was jinxing a snowman to terrorize several first-year Slytherins.

"Stop that," Lily demanded.

"Yes ma'am," Sirius said, surprised at her tone, "All right?"

"Do you know how to get into Hogsmeade?" Lily asked, anxiously, "I didn't go, on the last scheduled trip. Well, obviously you know that. Christmas is just a few days away, and I don't have anything for anyone!"

"Breathe," Sirius advised, looking amused, "Breathing's good. Of course I know how to get in."

"How?" Lily demanded.

"You walk through the Hogwarts gates and go up the road that says: HOGSMEADE," Sirius said, a smile tugging at his lips. He glanced over at the Slytherins, who were eagerly listening in. He then leaned towards Lily and whispered, "However, if you want another means of entering, meet me in the third floor corridor, tomorrow morning. The shops ought to be closed, by now."

"Blimey," Lily cried, horrified, "What time is it?"

"A quarter to six," Sirius said, checking his pocket watch.

"Thanks Sirius," Lily gasped, racing away.

"Always a pleasure, Red," Sirius called.

Lily actually managed to get to the corridor of the Fat Lady, before freezing. She couldn't do this.

Of all the things that she ever had to do, this was one of the most difficult. But why? Why should love be so difficult? She swore, picked at a thread in her robes, and paced the corridor to and fro.

She could do this. She could face him.

After all, she was in Gryffindor. She was a lioness.

She had to do this. She had to face him.

Lily drew her robes close to her. It was getting late. The waning moon shone through the window, bouncing off the corridor walls. Lily shuddered, thinking about the events that would occur, if the moon was full. Her heart briefly went out to Lupin.

She would go to the Common Room.

Yes, that's what she would do.

She would go to the Common Room, and see if he was there. If he wasn't, she would merely retreat to her dormitory and forget this whole nightmare. And if he was…

Blimey, what if he was? What would she say? She thought back to her mock-letters.

"James, I…"

"I…"

"James, I fancy you."

Lily practically screamed.

She had actually said it.

But, they're just words, after all.

"Are you just going to stand there muttering to yourself, or are you going to go in?"

Lily nearly jumped out of her skin. She was standing in front of the portrait of the Fat Lady, who was looking very cross.

"Oh, I'm sorry," Lily said, reddening. She dictated the password, and the Fat Lady swung open.

"Right," Lily muttered, "This is it, then."

She bravely crossed the threshold. She spotted his bag thrown carelessly on the floor.

"James," Lily croaked, "Can I talk to you?"

She stepped forward, and felt the world fall out from beneath her. He was there, on the couch. But he wasn't alone. He was snogging a sixth year girl. Amanda, was that her name? Yes, Lily had just written her up the other day, for not following the dress code. She was, without a doubt, a bird. And right now, she was entangled around James. Lily knew that she should leave, but her blasted, traitorous, legs wouldn't move. She felt something clench in her heart. Could hearts really break? Well, Lily supposed that it was possible. After all, anything was possible.

Lily whirled around, blinking rather quickly. Her legs finally moved, taking her out into the corridor at a rather impressive speed. Now if only they could stop. For she kept on running, the pathetic redhead with tears streaming down her cheeks.

She passed Lupin, who looked bewildered. He called her name, but still she didn't stop. It was one of those rare moments of turmoil, when your body seemed to take over your mind. A moment where wasn't paying attention to her surroundings. A moment when she pretty much gave up control of her body to the greater force. A moment when she needed to get away.

It was apparent that her body agreed, for when Lily looked around she saw that she had ran all the way to the overhang. The blasted overhang, where James had originally taken her.

Her legs finally gave way. She collapsed into a crouch, utterly defeated.

Somebody grabbed her shoulder and she gasped. Lupin was crouched next to her, looking quite concerned. He was wearing a heavy, patched, brown, cloak with a matching cap. It was only then that Lily realized how cold it was. Snowflakes littered the air, nestling in her hair.

"What happened?" Lupin asked, gently.

"Nothing," Lily said, swallowing, "I'm fine."

"Of course you are," Lupin said, his tone hard to decipher. He then repeated, "What happened?"

Lily took a shaky breath, before saying, "James is a bloody arse."

Her voice cracked and she buried her head in her hands, angry and humiliated.

Lupin groaned, "I should've known that Prongs was involved. What did he do this time?"

"Apparently, he _did_ Amanda Butterworth," Lily burst out.

Lupin was clearly thrown off, and he had no reply other than a rather high-pitched, "Oh."

Lily sighed, miserably, "I'm sorry. I suppose that was uncalled for."

Lily sighed, "It's just so frustrating."

"Mm," Lupin said, "Why exactly is it frustrating?"

"It's just that…" Lily flushed, quickly coming up with an excuse, "Well, they're practically defacing the couch! That's vandalism."

"Right," Lupin said, unable to keep a straight face, "In a world of Death Eaters and war, at least we have someone who truly cares about the rights of our couches."

"Oh, sod off," Lily snapped, as Lupin stifled a chuckle, "At any rate, it's unprofessional. He's supposed to be setting a good example."

"I suppose that's why Dumbledore picked you as Head Girl," Lupin agreed, "I can't think of anyone else who ever got so passionate over unprofessionalism!"

Lily shot him a fierce glare.

Lupin sighed, "Will you just tell me what's really bothering you?"

Lily didn't answer at first, trying to figure out the answer herself. Finally, she found herself wondering, "Was all of it real? The years of chasing me, and flirting with me, and asking me out…Was any of that real? Or was it all just words?

Lupin tilted his head, pondering the question. After a long pause, he finally asked, "Why do you want to know?"

"Why aren't you answering me?" Lily retorted.

"Well," Lupin said, slowly, "I suppose I'm just trying to figure out why this matters, now. What changed?"

"Nothing's changed," Lily said, but she couldn't quite meet his eye.

"Clearly," Lupin said; his tone still even.

"You didn't answer my question," Lily realized.

"Oh, I will," Lupin said, earnestly, "Just as soon as you answer this one: Do you fancy James?"

"What?" Lily spluttered, feeling her cheeks burn, "That's prosperous."

"Is it?" Lupin asked. When Lily didn't answer, Lupin whispered, "Bloody hell."

Lily glared at him, but Lupin didn't seem to notice and instead repeated, "Bloody hell. You fancy James Potter. This is brilliant. This is beyond brilliant; this is the breakthrough of a century!"

Lily crossed her arms, "Even if I did fancy James—mind you, I said _if_ I fancy him—it obviously doesn't matter. He obviously enjoys being tangled around Butterworth."

"Ah," Lupin said, finally getting it, "So you're jealous?"

"I'm not jealous," Lily said, frankly, "It's just rather heartbreaking."

"If you fancy him," Lupin added.

"If I fancy him," Lily repeated, "It would be rather heartbreaking to see him entwined around some other girl, if I fancy him."

Lupin smiled at this. He tried to hide it, but wasn't quick enough. Instead, he merely asked, "How do you know about this place, anyway?"

"James brought me up here, earlier this term," Lily said, absentmindedly.

"Really?" Lupin asked, looking surprised.

"So?" Lily shrugged, "He's probably brought a dozen girls up here."

"I wouldn't be so sure about that," Lupin said, smiling, "In fact, I'm willing to bet that, you included, there's only five people who know about this place. He wouldn't have brought just anyone up here."

When Lily didn't respond, Lupin sighed, "Listen to me. Amanda Butterworth is a bird. I can assure you that nothing is going to come out of that snog. Not one single thing. Yes, I'm sure that it was disappointed seeing the two of them, together; if only because it's defacing our nation's couches or because it's not the proper thing to do. However, _should_ you fancy James, you would know that he is not proper. He's not a gentleman. He's not a martyr, nor a saint, nor a hero. He's James Potter."

"I know that," Lily said, hotly.

Lupin continued, "I truly believe that he's been changing, the last few months. His head certainly isn't as inflated as it usually is. But he's not going to turn into something he's not. Now it's up to you to find out who you are and who you want to be. And you've come so far. You've made so many changes, in these past few months alone. I know that it's probably been hard, and there are times when you have regrets, but isn't it worth it?"

"Yes," Lily said, slowly, "Of course."

"Only?" Lupin offered.

"Only, seven years ago, I would've never seen myself here," Lily admitted, "I thought that I would always be friends with Severus, and that Petunia would come around. I certainly never thought that I could ever call you four my friends. Only now, I don't even know how I could've ever been friends with a person like Snape."

Lupin looked thoughtful, "Snape was the one who told you that you were a witch, right? He was the one who opened this door to an amazing world. He was the one who tried to show you that your life could be a fairy-tale. But eventually, all children have to grow up."

Lily thought of what Sirius had said, several weeks ago, "This isn't a fairy-tale."

"No, it's not," Lupin agreed, smiling, "That's alright, though. You see, the Marauders have never really believed in fairy-tales. A prince isn't going to come whisk you away to a castle and make your dreams come true. Sometimes, there really aren't any happy endings. And that's why you should never take anything for granted. You should embrace every happy moment, when you get the chance. You should know that for every person that will knock you down, there will be a person standing beside you, to help you get back up. You should know that perfection and infallibleness don't exist. I'm not telling you to lower your expectations. Shoot for the stars, if you see fit. Just know that no-one has reached the stars, by sitting on the earth. If you want to reach one, you need to work for it. I can't really tell you how to do that; you have to figure it out for yourself. But I can tell you that the wrong way to do it is to sit on the overhang and throw yourself a pity party, because I know for a fact that that isn't you."

"I really hate when you get like this," Lily pointed out, but she found herself smiling, "You're right, of course. I suppose I just had a moment of weakness."

"Well sure," Lupin shrugged, "We all have moments of weakness."

"Thank you Remus," Lily said, sincerely,

The two hugged, but Lily pulled away and sighed, "I wish that I knew who I was."

Lupin laughed, "Lily, everyone wishes that they knew who they were! Do you want to know who you are? You're the girl who reached for the heavens, with the help from a star, the moon, and a…a rat. I swear, I was going somewhere with that."

The two laughed, but not before they heard someone else say, "Well, you're complicated, of course!"

Both Lupin and Lily jumped and turned. Peter and Sirius were climbing up the overhang, shivering; the temperature was only declining.

"How much of that did you hear?" Lily asked, her cheeks flaming.

"Only the last bit," Peter admitted, "Anyway, I know that it still doesn't fit your world-limit, but I stand by it."

"What's that?" Lily asked, slightly confused.

"Complicated," Peter said, smiling.

Lily understood and laughed, "Thank you, Peter."

Sirius raised his hand, as if he needed permission to say something, "I do have one question, though."

"What is it?"

"How long have you fancied James?"

Lily spluttered, horrified. Sirius' grin deepened into a smirk. Feeling hurt, Lily spun around to face a surprised Lupin, and cried, "You told him?"

"No, I swear!"

"No, he didn't tell me," Sirius assured her, "You did. Just now."

Lily didn't get it at first. When she did, she closed her eyes, exasperated.

"Blood…y…hell," Sirius whispered, the same reaction that Lupin had, "You really do fancy him, don't you?"

"Bloody hell," Peter repeated, looking like a tot in a candy shop.

Lily's eyes flew open and she said, "Listen, you three can't tell him."

Sirius groaned, "I wish you had told me that, earlier."

"What?" Lily shrieked.

Sirius laughed, "Calm down. I was just joking."

Lily let out a string of curse words, which made Sirius laugh even harder.

"So, if you fancy him and he fancies you, why aren't you two snogging it up?" Sirius asked, making fitting facial expressions.

Lily chose her words, carefully, "Alright, Sirius. You know James better than anyone. Do you honestly think that he fancies me? I mean, do you think he was sincere or . . ."

Sirius smiled, understanding, "Listen, I know that Prongs has had a few birds, in his lifetime. But, he's never sprung in between them and Moony, when the latter was a werewolf. He's never lent them an ear, when they were upset about their boyfriends. He's never taken them up to the overhang. He's never gone to the hospital, when their fathers were ill. He's never taken them on a broomstick ride. He's never…"

"I get it," Lily snapped, but she was smiling.

Sirius nodded, "The point is, you two are obviously meant to be together. It'll happen soon enough; providing that you guys don't do anything too reckless. Blimey, I've always wanted a sister."

"Excuse me?"

"Well," Sirius looked very thoughtful as he said, "James _is_ pretty much my brother. So, should you two ever wind up together that would make you my sister. And I'm sure that these blokes would agree."

Lupin and Peter nodded, encouragingly.

Lily was truly touched, "Thank you."

"Oh wait," Sirius said, suddenly looking horrified, "Does that mean that I have to accept Petunia as my sister?"

Lily laughed, and repeated, "Thank you, Sirius. Thank you, all of you."

Peter and Lupin smiled and the latter said, "Even the brightest witch of her age still needs friends to stand by her."

Sirius grinned, "If you really want proof that you and James were meant to snog, try defending yourself from a few Dementors."

Lily didn't understand at first. Then, she took out her wand, focused on how happy she felt, and whispered, "Expecto Patronum."

The doe sprang out, circling around them.

"Wicked," Sirius whispered, fondly.

Lily reached out, just as the doe disappeared, "Just out of curiosity, what did James ever describe me as? Earlier this term, I mean."

"Not a bird," Sirius said, simply.

"After that," Lily said, "I remember that he said something, but I couldn't hear him."

The other three exchanged glances before Lupin said, "It doesn't suit you, anymore."

"Why not?" Lily asked, enquiringly.

"Because," Sirius said, mysteriously, "You didn't get away."

"What?"

"The point is," Sirius quickly exclaimed, "While Remus' and Peter's descriptions were nice, everything can be summed up with mine."

"Which was?"

"Lily," Sirius said, smiling, "Nothing more. Nothing less."


	13. Chapter 13

They snog. The end.

Author's Note: Well, this is it. I just want to thank everyone for your wonderful reviews and questions. It's been an amazing experience. Perhaps I'll write some future 'Jily'-themed stories. Until then, enjoy the final chapter of Serendipity.

() () () () ()

"Vital lives are about action. You can't feel warmth unless you create it, can't feel delight until you play, can't know serendipity unless you risk."

― Joan Erickson

_I won't give up on us (No I'm not giving up)_

_God knows I'm tough enough (I am tough, I am loved)_

_We've got a lot to learn (We're alive, we are loved)_

_God knows we're worth it (We're worth it)_

() () () () ()

Chapter Thirteen

In the end, Lily had to admire the sheer amount of effort that went into such a simple moment. Then again, it wasn't that simple. Life never was, and this moment just happened to transform her life. Her life and his…their lives…all of their lives.

For, she wasn't in this alone. She never was.

The morning of Christmas Eve found Lily in her dormitory, pulling a brush through her long hair. In the end, she ended up getting it perfect, before hiding it beneath a black cabbie cap, which matched her thick cloak. She glanced in the mirror, and nearly screamed. Sirius was standing in the doorway, looking bored stiff.

"What are you doing?" Lily asked, as her heart thundered.

"Standing here," Sirius grinned, brazenly.

"How did you get up here?" Lily rephrased her question.

"Ah, I could always get up the stairs as a dog," Sirius exclaimed, waving his hand, "I just didn't want you to be uncomfortable."

"Well, thank you for looking after my solace," Lily said, sarcastically, "Any particular reason you decided to barge in?"

"Everyone else is waiting in the Common Room," Sirius said, pointedly, "We'd like to get to Hogsmeade before the New Year."

"Alright," Lily laughed, "Just let me fix my makeup."

Sirius practically groaned, "I never understood why dames had to carry around fifty pounds of makeup. Is it really necessary?"

"I don't carry around _fifty_ pounds of makeup," Lily huffed, "But, I certainly don't want to look like the walking dead. I use the bare minimum. Besides, most girls doll themselves up, so that they won't feel self-conscious around hypocritical pigs, like you."

She said the last part teasingly, though she realized that a few months ago, she would've meant every word. Nevertheless, Sirius hung onto something that she said, "Come off it. _You're_ self-conscious?"

Lily didn't know if she should be flattered or insulted. Instead, she said, "Yes, if you must know, there are days when I feel uncomfortable in my own skin."

"Hmm," Sirius said, thoughtfully. He decided to change the subject by asking, "So, do you really fancy James?"

"Yes, Sirius," Lily sighed.

"Why?" Sirius asked, quizzically.

Lily couldn't hide her exasperation, "What do you mean, 'why'?"

"Well," Sirius said, thoughtfully, "Most people fancy someone, because they fancy everything about them. How much do you know about James Potter? I mean, do you know how tall he is? Do you know how much he weighs?"

Lily blinked, wondering what that had to do with anything, "Err, not to the exact number…"

"Do you know if he has any freckles?" Sirius continued, sounding ever so bored.

"Well, I don't see how…"

"Do you know what sweater he wore, last Tuesday?"

"Why would I…"

"Merlin," Sirius sniffed, "Do you know him at all?"

Lily spluttered, before bursting out, "Those things are all trivial! They're meaningless, pointless little things. I don't care how tall he is, or if he's skinny or what he wore on the fifth of October! That's nothing compared to the fact that he's a brilliant person. He's loyal and courageous and . . . Oh, don't give me that look!"

For Sirius was giving her an all-knowing smirk—well, she was gushing, after all! Lily flushed, before choosing her words very carefully as she said, "The point is that you can't define a person by what you see. That's just asinine."

"Then tell me," Sirius said, unable to wipe the irritating smirk, "What makes you so damn special?"

"_Excuse me_!?"

"Never mind, we ought to get going," Sirius said, hastily, "Are you coming, or are you going to start ranting about James' eyes?"

He dodged a flying textbook, and laughed as he saw the look on Lily's face. Lily then grabbed the passes, which had been given to her by Dumbledore, last night. Come to think of it, the Headmaster had been more than willing to hand them over. He even threw in an extra one, which Lily used to invite Frank.

Thus, James, Sirius, Lupin, Peter, Lily, Alice, Marlene, Mary, and Frank happily left the castle and strolled towards the gates. As soon as Lily held up the passes, the gates glowed and swung open, allowing them to pass.

"Blimey," Lupin chuckled, "I can't remember the last time that we actually walked through the gates to get to Hogsmeade."

The group chatted away, while they walked into the village. Lily smiled—it was perfect, in every way. The snow settled on the thatched roofs and trees, enchanted so that it never got dirty or soiled. Every window had a candle or a wreath in it. Carolers walked around, their cheeks and noses pink. Bright eyes stuck out from bundled tourists, and children disappeared behind large parcels. It was beautiful.

"LILY!" Sirius suddenly roared.

Lily spun around, just in time to see James wrench his neck to look towards several owls.

"What?" Lily snapped, as Sirius merely grinned.

"Nothing," Sirius said, "It's just that if you were looking at the things that were looking at you, when you weren't looking at them, life would be a lot simpler."

"What the bloody hell are you talking about, mate?" Peter asked.

Sirius's answer was muffled by a mouth of snow, courtesy of James' well-aimed snowball. Sirius threw one back, but it nearly overturned a dustbin. The group decided to quickly keep walking.

"Fancy we go to Honeydukes first?" Mary asked, causing Lupin's eyes to light up. They entered the shop, which was busy in the holiday season. Lily noticed a flyer, advertising that half the profits would go towards a foundation to help families affected by Death Eater attacks.

"Do you reckon that Petunia would like one of these, for Christmas?" Lily asked, showing Alice a box of everlasting candy-canes.

"I reckon Petunia would like a good kick in the—" Sirius broke off as he saw the dangerous look on Lily's face, "Yeah, maybe. But, do you know what she really needs?"

He led Lily over to a small display of early Valentine's Day candy, "These sweets can help anyone find love, in their miserable life."

"Didn't Amanda Butterworth overdose on one of these?" Peter asked, picking up an endorphin-releasing chocolate.

"Last year," Sirius laughed, remembering, "Professor McGonagall found her snogging the suit of armor on the second floor."

Lupin snorted, "Yeah, that's bloody attractive."

"Give her credit," James said, unable to keep a straight face, "At least the suit of armor stayed, long enough."

The Marauders and Frank cracked up, before realizing that the girls were pointedly staring. Lily was trying to hide a smile.

"Sorry," James coughed, "I suppose that wasn't very gentlemanly."

"No, it's fine," Lily promised, ignoring the fact that the other three Marauders suddenly had very large smiles, "But, I know that Petunia would definitely not like anything off this display. I wouldn't, either."

"Really?" Sirius said, suddenly fascinated, "Tell us Lily, what do you like? I'm sure that we'd all be fascinated by the answer."

"Lay off," Lupin hissed, before joining Mary next to an incredibly large chocolate display. Lily couldn't help but to notice that Mary blushed.

Sirius might've kept poking at Lily, had The Storekeeper not come over, saying, "Are you going to buy something, or not?"

"Yes, I am," Sirius said, politely. He pointed towards the stand next to Lupin and Mary and promptly said, "I'd like to by that."

"This chocolate bar?" the man asked, going to retrieve it.

"No, my good man," Sirius laughed, "The entire chocolate display."

"Cheeky, are you?" The Storekeeper was not amused, "Get out."

"Sir, I am completely serious," Sirius said, daring anyone to make a pun. He dug into his wallet, producing a 100-galleon piece, "This should be enough, shouldn't it?"

The Storekeeper gasped, "You surely don't mean…?"

"Half of that will go to the foundation, won't it?" Sirius asked, "Excellent. Send that up to the Gryffindor Common Room. Put it in the name of: Remus Lupin."

"What?" Lupin asked, spinning around.

"Consider this your Christmas present," Sirius grinned. He then got a brilliant idea, "Oh, and how much is that display of Bertie Botts?"

"Well, that's not for sale…"

Sirius fished out another 100-galleon piece, "Is it for sale, now?"

"Yes, sir!" The Storekeeper chirped, "And who shall I make this out to?"

"Peter Pettigrew," Sirius grinned, as Peter gave a squeal of sorts. The Storekeeper levitated the displays and personally walked off with them.

"How am I supposed to top that?" James laughed.

"How are any of us supposed to top that?" Frank asked, having just gotten Alice a box of chocolates.

Lily merely crossed her arms and shook her head, as Sirius grinned, "Ah, I love Christmas shopping! Problem, Red?"

"No," Lily said, "It's just that I grew up in a family where we scraped together every penny to buy each other modest gifts."

"Indeed?" Sirius looked intrigued, "I grew up in a family where we used our vast amount of money to assert dominance, in hopes that one day we will be able to control the world. To each their own, I suppose."

Lily couldn't help but to laugh. Deciding against buying anything, she persuaded the others to go to the next shop, before Sirius chose to buy out Honeydukes. Instead, they crossed over to Zonko's where Sirius and James replenished their prank devices. Lily realized that they could've walked the shop, blindfolded.

Next, they headed over to the Quidditch Supply shop, where Sirius, Lupin, and Peter snuck over to the Chaser section.

"Aha, this is it!" Sirius said, triumphantly. He picked up what appeared to be an ordinary Quaffle. After several seconds, however, spikes shot out from every side.

"That's cruel," Lily gasped, unsurprised when Sirius placed it in his shopping basket.

"I want to get James something, but I don't know where to begin," Lily admitted, "What do you three think?"

Sirius tossed her something. Lily flushed, dropping it, as she realized that it was an athletic cup, "Very funny! Will you knock it off? I didn't tell you three about…my emotions, so that you could tease me, at every wake!"

"He said that he needed a new pair of goggles," Lupin kindly suggested, "These ones deflect against any weather hazards."

"Why don't you get him that?" Lily said, suddenly getting an idea, "I'll be right back. I need to go back over to Honeydukes."

When she returned, she was surprised to find that Alice, Mary, and Marlene and taken the place of Lupin, Peter, and Sirius.

"What's that for?" Alice asked, nodding to the wrapped parcel.

"Oh, nothing," Lily flushed, "Just a present…in case."

"Has she always been this easy to read?" Mary sighed, "Lily, love…we know."

"Know what?" Lily squeaked, her cheeks flaming.

"That you fancy James Potter," the three girls chorused.

And in that moment, Lily wished that she could've crawled into a hole and simply rotted the rest of her life away. To her astonishment, however, the girls were smiling.

"We've known for a while," Marlene added, "So, don't go off blaming the boys for snitching. Although, Sirius was a tad bit gleeful…"

"How long have you known?" Lily whispered.

"Oh, since about the first week of the semester," Alice said, "Of course, we couldn't be certain, mind you. But then, you went and kissed him on the broomstick ride."

"You knew about that?" Lily hissed.

"Of course I did," Alice said, smiling, "I saw the two of you, just as I was passing around the Astronomy Tower. I just pretended to shrug it off—after all, you were sopping wet and embarrassed enough."

"Speaking of being embarrassed, do relax," Mary sighed, "You're practically as red as that Quaffle. Honestly Lily, it's okay."

"You haven't been the same since," Alice said, continuing her story, "The way you looked at him, the way you talked about him…it was obvious. It was romantic."

"But we knew that it was eating away at you," Marlene said, "I don't imagine why."

"Yes, do tell us," Alice nodded, "What stopped you from telling us?"

Lily sighed, suddenly feeling very foolish, "Well, it makes me a complete hypocrite. After everything I've said…but there's just something about them…all four of them…the Marauders have changed."

"Yes, but you've changed as well," Marlene pointed out, "For the better."

"Definitely for the better," Alice smiled, "I like this new Lily."

"No, it's not a new Lily," Mary corrected, "It's the old Lily. She's just finally blossoming."

Lily smiled, finding that she needed to wipe her eyes, "Thanks."

Frank poked his head around the corner, "Are you girls finished with your confrontation? Sirius and Peter can only pelt James with snowballs for so long, before the latter becomes suspicious!"

The rest of the day found Lily and James standing considerably close together. Neither one seemed to mind a bit. The others had a habit of casually wandering off, leaving them alone to talk and laugh. At one point, Lily sadly watched as Lupin stopped outside the gates of the Shrieking Shack. She hesitated, before joining him.

"You know," Lily said, thoughtfully, "Mary was just admiring that bouquet of flowers in the window, back there. You should buy them."

"I don't know…" Lupin sighed, glancing away.

Lily frowned, "Remus, what's wrong?"

"Nothing, I'm fine."

"Of course you are," Lily said, copying his words from yesterday, "What's wrong?"

Lupin raised his eyebrows, "Maybe I'm just worried that Mary and I are going to deface the couches. I don't want to upset you, again."

Lily was not amused, "Honestly, what's bothering you? I understand being shy, but…"

"Lily, you don't understand!" Lupin cried, "I'm a…a….werewolf."

The whispered word hung in the icy air.

"That's true," Lily said, slowly, "But, you won't change for another week, so today, you're merely Remus Lupin."

Lupin sighed, glancing towards the Shrieking Shack, "Werewolves don't usually…we can't…I can't just…"

"You can't what?" Lily asked, straightening up.

"I can't risk her getting hurt," Lupin finally hissed.

"Remus…" Lily began, desperately.

"She deserves someone better than me…"

"Stop that," Lily reprimanded.

"It's true," Lupin calmly insisted, "I'm poor…"

"That's not…"

"I'm a monster…"

"Remus John Lupin," Lily thundered, "Don't you dare say that! Listen to me—none of those things matter! When you love someone, you look past trivial things like the other person's appearance or economic status. Love is so much more than that. When a person loves you, it's because they love and accept everything about you—the good and the bad. They'll stand by you, even when the rest of the world turns away."

Lily broke off, as the two realized that the other Marauders had come up the path. They were standing nearby, arms-crossed, and smiling. James had an odd expression of his face. Lily hadn't realized that she had been talking so loud! Nevertheless, James smiled and said, "By all means, please continue."

"We've been trying to tell him this for five years," Sirius added.

So, Lily took a deep breath and continued, "Remus, one day you are going to find someone who loves you. It might not be Mary, but it will be someone! It will be someone who will give everything to be with you. But until that day, you need to know that you are never going to be alone. You have friends who will stand by you. You have brothers who will stand by you. If that's not love, then I don't know what is. There are many different forms of love. Just remember that."

"By Jove, I think she's got it," Sirius exclaimed, smiling.

"Well-said," James praised.

Lupin sincerely thanked her, and the group rejoined and went to a small shop, which sold magically-equipped Muggle devices. There, Lily bought an instant hair-dryer for Petunia, a set of levitating pots and pans for her mother, and enchanted hedge-clippers for her father. Lily, Lupin, James, and Peter snuck away to chip in and buy the perfect gift for Sirius.

When everything was said and done, James offered to buy Lily a steaming hot mug of Butterbeer at the Three Broomsticks. Lily gave a start, before realizing that he was extending the offer to everyone. They crowded into the pub, which was practically bursting with the amount of people. Madam Rosmerta eventually found them several small tables. Sirius, Peter, and Marlene crowded around one. Alice and Frank sat at another. Lupin and Mary sat at the third, leaving James and Lily to the fourth. Perhaps Madam Rosmerta wasn't quite as dotty as she looked. She served them their drinks, before leaving them alone.

James and Lily cheerfully talked, almost forgetting that the others were there. An hour passed, before Sirius finally cleared his throat, saying that they should get back to the school.

"So, was this a date?" Frank asked, as everyone stood up.

"No!" Lily, James, Sirius, Marlene, Lupin, and Mary chorused, hastily.

Frank blinked, "I meant between Alice and me…I promised to take her out for Christmas and I was just wondering if it counted."

Alice assured him that it did, and they headed back towards the school for a round of hot chocolate and biscuits. They put their presents under the large tree in the Common Room, instead of at the foots of their beads. They laughed as the other students gawked at the large chocolate display. Lily placed her presents for the Marauders beneath the tree, but made sure to place them in the back. That night, Lily slept better than she had in weeks. She felt a warm feeling spread through her body; one that she was sure didn't have anything to do with the Butterbeer.

The girls woke up at the crack of dawn, the next morning. Lily didn't care how old she was—she would always be excited on Christmas. They threw on their dressing gowns and raced down to the Common Room, where the Marauders were eagerly waiting.

"What are you lot wearing?" Marlene laughed.

For each Marauder sported a thick knitted scarf, though it wasn't the best craftsmanship.

"My mum made them," James explained, as Lily tried not to laugh, "You're just jealous because you don't have a brilliant sense of fashion, like I do."

Lily unwrapped a beautiful sweater from Alice and a necklace from Mary. Marlene gave her a hilarious book: MAKEUP TIPS: LOOK YOUR BEST FOR THE DEATH EATER INVASION. Lupin gave her a candle that would magically change to any scent she was thinking about. Peter's gift to her was last-minute kit from the Three Broomsticks, which changed water into Butterbeer. She appreciated it, all the same. Sirius' gift was…

"What is this?" Lily asked, holding up a peculiar bottle, "Perfume?"

"Not quite," Sirius grinned. He checked to make sure that James was distracted, before whispering, "That's what Muggles spray on themselves, whenever they go hunting. It's made to attract deer."

Lily threw her head back and laughed, "Thanks, Sirius!"

In turn, Lily gave Lupin a book on the most esteemed werewolves of the century and Peter a package of Sugar Quills that looked just like regular quills, so that he could bring them to class without being caught. She gave Alice, Mary, and Marlene a wonderful new perfume, which transformed every twenty minutes.

"I do believe it's high time that we showed you your present," James grinned, clapping Sirius on the back.

"It's about bloody time," Sirius said, "Where is it?"

Remus handed him a present, saying, "Peter, James, Lily and I all chipped in to buy it."

Sirius gleefully unwrapped it, before becoming confused, "Oh…err, thanks, mates! A picture of a motorbike…"

"No, you moron," Lily laughed, "We got you the bloody motorbike!"

Sirius practically dropped the photograph. For a moment, he merely stared at Lily, who laughed and continued, "We just couldn't bring it up here, without you noticing. It's at the shop in Hogsmeade, but you can get it at any time."

Sirius couldn't help but to gape, "You…you lot got me a motorbike?"

"Nah," James grinned, "We didn't just get you a motorbike. We got you a flying motorbike!"

Sirius made a strange noise. He spun around, ducking his head.

"Oh my," Lily gasped, "Sirius, you're crying!"

"No, I'm not," Sirius said, hastily.

"Yes, you are," Marlene cried, leaping up, "Sirius! You really do have a heart."

"It's bloody allergies," Sirius insisted, "Hang on, there's two presents left."

He bent down and smiled, "Ah…To James, From Lily. To Lily, From James."

Sirius handed them over, and Lily couldn't help but to notice that the others were eagerly staring, though they tried to act nonchalant.

"Turkish Delight!" James cried, excitedly, "Thanks, Lily!"

"You're welcome," Lily said, "I know that it's not much…"

"It's brilliant," James said, earnestly, "I can't believe that you remembered."

Lily smiled and opened her present. She gasped, "Oh, wow! Thanks, James!"

It turned out that Lily wasn't the only one who remembered their conversation, during their Head Duties. James had gotten her a Beatles album. Lily's smile broadened as she suddenly understood, "The _Red_ Album."

"Happy Christmas," James beamed.

"Happy Christmas," Lily whispered.

There was a single pause, where she caught his eye. It was broken by Sirius, who pointedly cleared his throat and said, "Listen, I know that you two are having a moment, but do you think that you can…hold it in…or something, because there's a bloody motorbike with my name on it!"

() () () () ()

Later that night, Lily retreated to her dormitory to play the record. She gingerly placed it on the gramophone, allowing music to fill the empty room. Lily opened the window, allowing the breeze to flow through the room. The snow settled into her hair, catching on her lashes.

Lily smiled, before bringing a gentle hand to her cheek. She was crying, but she couldn't imagine why. She wasn't sad. She was…

Happy.

Lily pondered the feeling. She was genuinely happy.

Lily realized that this was it. This was the moment to end a long line of moments, and to begin a new one. Lily took a deep breath and headed down to the Common Room, leaving the record on for good measure. Upon reaching the bottom of the staircase, she smiled. Sirius, Lupin, and Peter were sitting by the fireplace, snug in their scarves. They were roasting marshmallows in the fire, but looked up when she entered.

"Lily," Lupin smiled, warmly.

Sirius motioned for her to join them. Upon looking closer, however, his smile faded and he tilted his head, "Lily?"

"Are you alright?" Peter asked, anxiously.

"I'm fine," Lily admitted, "More than fine, actually. You haven't seen James, have you?"

"Come to think of it, he's been gone for an hour," Peter complained, "He was supposed to be nicking some more marshmallows from the kitchen."

"Peter," Lupin hissed, before realizing that Lily didn't look that concerned.

Instead, she said, "Would you check the map? Please, Sirius?"

Sirius didn't say anything, and was instead giving Lily a peculiar look. The others seemed just as curious, but Sirius was truly contemplating something. He could see something that the others couldn't. As it sunk in, his eyes widened and a grin spread across his face. He didn't say what he wanted to, however, and instead merely whispered, "Of course."

He pulled out the large piece of parchment, tapped it with his wand, and murmured, "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good."

He scanned it for a moment, before raising his eyebrow, "He's down by the lake. Hang on—he's on the overhang."

Of course he was. Lily smiled—it was too perfect. Sirius suddenly chuckled. He tried to hide it, but he eventually threw his head back and laughed.

"What?" Lily asked.

"Nothing," Sirius said, grinning, "It's just…I've been waiting seven years for this."

"Seven years?" Lily asked, amused.

"Nearly," Sirius pointed out, "Ever since that day at King's Cross."

Lily didn't quite understand what he was talking about. And then, it hit her.

She closed her eyes and remembered. She was eleven and was standing in the car park of the large train station. Tears brimmed her eyes, mixing with the rain that pelted her hair. Her parents were quarreling—her father was sure that they had been pranked. Her mother was debating whether they should call the police. After all, how could there be a Platform 9 ¾?

Then suddenly, he was just there. James was walking towards them, shielded by a red umbrella. He grinned and assured them that it was real. He had made several jokes, before handing Lily the umbrella. He seemed completely unfazed by the fact that he was now getting drenched. Instead, he happily assured the Evans' that he knew the way. He called over his friend, Sirius, and the group set off. James had a hard time convincing Lily to step through the barrier, but somehow she did. They went together…

Somehow, James and Sirius had disappeared in the crowd, and Lily and Petunia had fought. When James found her, she was in tears. He had awkwardly invited her to sit in their compartment, where she remained until they had insulted Snape…

Snape…Lily originally thought that Snape had opened up the world of magic to her. In a way, he had. After all, he had told Lily about the letter and to this day, Lily truly appreciated that. However, it was James who truly helped her enter that world. It was always James…He was always there…

Lily opened her eyes, "Thank you. Thank you, all of you."

"You're quite welcome," Lupin smiled, as he caught on, "Are you sure that this is what you want?"

"I'm positive," Lily said, smiling, "Sometimes, there are happy endings."

"Nah, there aren't," Sirius said, thoughtfully, "Just happy moments."

Lily left without another word, passing Alice, Mary, and Marlene who were just coming back from Christmas dessert.

"Where's she off to?" Alice asked.

Lupin merely shook his head, smiling. Peter grinned, looking satisfactory.

"Mischief Managed," Sirius whispered, for more reasons than just to conceal the map.

Mary suddenly let out a squeal of sorts, "She's gone after James, hasn't she? I knew it!"

"We all knew that this day would come," Marlene pointed out, "It was just a matter of…Sirius, what are you doing?"

For Sirius had suddenly leapt up, crossing over to the portrait hole.

"You can't be serious," Alice groaned.

Lupin sighed, and he and Peter joined Sirius. Reluctantly, the girls did as well. The six made their way through the castle, collecting Frank along the way.

Lily, meanwhile, had gone outside. Hundreds of tea-lights lined the ground. Perhaps they were put there by the house elves, to celebrate the holiday. Or perhaps, they were put there by a certain, mad, headmaster, who saw something before anyone else did. They lit Lily's way, as she walked across the grounds. The snowflakes littered the air, but she hardly noticed.

She reached the overhang, where he was nothing more than a silhouette on the three-quarter moon. He turned around, upon hearing Lily approach. He stood up, but didn't say anything. Lily opened her mouth, but found that she couldn't think of anything to say, as well.

There was nothing that needed to be said. No words were necessary, really. James took a tentative step towards her. Lily matched it, before throwing caution to the wind. She wrapped her arms around his neck, and promptly kissed him. She felt goose bumps shimmer across her skin, as he returned it. The edges of her body melted, and so did the rest of the world. It quickly came back, with the sound of a snapped twig. The two pulled apart, just in time to watch Sirius duck back into the shrubs. Both laughed, realizing that the others had been there all along.

James smirked, hitting Sirius with a well-aimed snowball. Sirius returned it, and when Lily sought revenge, he ducked, causing her snowball to hit Lupin. Lupin threw one back, but Peter accidentally got in the way. It was around this time that sheer chaos commenced, as it always did. The others jumped out of their hiding spots, laughing and participating.

It was strange, to watch seven teenagers break up a romantic moment with a snowball fight. Then again, not so strange at all. Of course, they were breaking a good amount of school rules. For the first time in her life, Lily didn't seem to care. After all, rules were made to be tweaked, just a little. Perhaps this is why a Headmaster glanced out his window, before doing nothing more than happily returning to his mug of tea

"Mischief Managed," Lily whispered.

In three years, Lily and James would be dead. Their son would be in the care of Petunia and her husband. Sirius would be sitting in a cell at Azkaban, awaiting his fate. Peter would be dashing through the sewers, unknowingly heading towards a large family of wizards. Lupin would fall into an uneasy state of depression, occasionally keeping touch with Mary. Marlene and her family would be gone. Alice and Frank would suffer a fate worse than death. None of that seemed to matter, at the moment. It was a beautiful, simple, brilliant, moment. It was a moment where the seven friends forgot about the rest of the world. It was a moment that Lily could've never foreseen. It was a moment of serendipity.


End file.
